


I Shall Believe

by ohhitherekate



Series: Brooke Davis/Carter Baizen [4]
Category: Gossip Girl, One Tree Hill
Genre: F/M, mature themes in future chapters, one tree hill/gossip girl crossover
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-15
Updated: 2019-07-23
Packaged: 2020-05-12 02:23:36
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 56,491
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19219654
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ohhitherekate/pseuds/ohhitherekate
Summary: Brooke Davis never imagined just how much her life would change by moving to Manhattan, New York. But then she meets a charming man named Carter Baizen who changes everything. CROSSOVER: Brooke Davis/Carter Baizen





	1. Hunger

* * *

 

 

It had been a little over half of a year since Brooke Davis packed up her Los Angeles home and made the move across the country to New York. The young woman had been living in L.A since she was eighteen years old, eager to start her internship at Victoria’s Secret, all the while quietly creating a following for her own fashion line. After a year of being an intern, Clothes over Bro’s had sky rocketed into popularity, enough so that people were coming to her asking if she would allow them to invest in her line, helping make it bigger and better. Victoria’s Secret even offered Brooke a designer’s position for their company, begging her to stay – ready to pull out a large sum of money just to keep her in their grips.

Victoria had been the one to convince her to tell them no. To agree to let people invest in her own line, in the hopes of making it a multi-million-dollar line. Brooke was hesitant – she knew Victoria had the business savvy, that she wouldn’t lead her into something that would fail. But that was mostly because if Brooke failed, Victoria would fail too.

A year after turning down Victoria’s Secret, Brookes fashion line was being picked up by every major clothing department. The hope Victoria had of making her daughters fashion line a multi-million-dollar line became reality. The next year, with the wild success the line had, Victoria had convinced her daughter to venture out a bit – perhaps creating a line for men as well. _Clothes 4 Bro’s_. A magazine? _B-Davis Couture_. A magazine owned by Clothes over Bro’s

Brooke hadn’t thought the magazine would be a success, but here it was now, four years after the first magazine was published, still one of the top fashion magazines in the world. Someone had compared it as, “ _The new Vogue_ ” Brooke had belly laughed at that.

The twenty-five-year-old had everything she ever dreamed of now.

_Well, mostly everything._

She had spent the last seven years living in Los Angeles, six of those years with her best friend Peyton Sawyer.

And then Lucas Scott came to town after publishing his second book.

Brooke knew it was only a matter of time until Lucas and Peyton ended up getting back together.

One month.

That’s all it took.

Lucas moved in with Brooke and Peyton, _nope,_ not awkward at all.

Then they got engaged.

Brooke was happy for them. She had long let go of the sliver of hope that someday Lucas would choose her. He never had before – what would make him pick her over Peyton now? Not that she wanted him. That ship sailed around the time she left with Peyton for LA.

The Scott-Sawyer wedding was held in Tree Hill, North Carolina, a place Brooke never dreamed of going back to. Nathan, Haley, and their son (Brookes godson) Jamie all flew back to Tree Hill from Seattle where they had been living ever since Nathan had been drafted by the Seattle Sonics after College. Her home town hadn’t changed much, or really at all. Brooke really didn’t understand why Peyton would want to have her wedding in Tree Hill, or to ever go back – but Peyton insisted on it.

They were married on the Rivercourt. Nathan was Lucas’ best man. And Brooke, of course, was Peyton’s maid of honor. Haley officiated the wedding, and Lily and Jamie were the flower girl and ring bearer.

Brooke felt her eyes prickle with tears when she watched Larry walk Peyton down the aisle, her heart aching at the thought that she’d never have the loving father-daughter relationship Larry and Peyton had. If Brooke ever got married, she doubted her father would even show up to the ceremony.

She had gotten drunk that night, falling down into the seat next to Nathan, Haley on his other-side giving her a worried look. _“When I get married, will you walk me down the aisle, Nate?”_ Brooke had asked him with a pout after he had taken away her glass of champagne.

Nate had given her a sad smile and nodded his head. _“I mean, I might have to fight Jamie for it though. The kid is pretty attached to you.”_

That had made Brooke smile.

She wasn’t there as much as she wanted to be for her Godson, but whenever Nathan flew out to play against the Lakers, he’d bring Haley and Jamie along with him. And they’d all stay at Brooke and Peyton’s for however long they were in town. Occasionally Brooke would fly up to Seattle to visit them, and they’d fly down to LA during the off-season to see her as well.

Brooke had tried, and failed, to convince her married best friends to buy a house in LA. She said it could be there vacation home for the off-season – that it’d be much cheaper to just buy a house to live in while they were in LA instead of staying at a hotel. But they told her they couldn’t, that the money that would be going to a second home would be better used as Jamie’s college-fund.

Peyton and Lucas were now living in London, where they were pursuing their careers, Lucas, trying to find inspiration for another best-selling novel, and Peyton, creating her own label and signing musicians she heard playing in pubs.

Haley had started a teaching job last year at a Private School in Seattle, and Nathan was still a starting player for the Sonics. Rachel was off somewhere doing God knows what, Brooke had heard through the grape-vines that she was famous in Japan after modeling for some make-up product. But Brooke didn’t know if Rachel was living in Japan or not. They hadn’t spoken in years.

Bevin was married to Tim Smith, a fact that still made Brooke inwardly, and outwardly cringe. Mouth was a sports news anchor in Charlotte, and Skillz was the high-school basketball coach at Tree Hill, taking over for Whitey years ago. But she had heard from Nathan that some of the coaches from Duke were looking to get him to coach for the University after taking the Tree Hill Ravens to three more State Championships. Under his leadership, they had won all three.  

Even Karen and Lily had finally made the move to New Zealand to be with Andy.

Everyone had moved on with their lives.

Brooke tried.

Hard.

But living in LA after Peyton moved was difficult. The only people Brooke really knew in LA were other fashion designers, coke-head models, and her interns. There were the occasional celebrities Brooke knew, designing outfits for them to wear to movie premieres and award shows, but they weren’t enough to keep Brooke in LA.

**_Davis Enterprises_ **

(That’s what her mother decided to name the company,)

had a few select branch locations.

 

**Los Angeles, California**

**Paris, France** ****

**Sydney, Australia**

 

_And of course,_

 

**Manhattan, New York**

 

 

Brooke had debated moving to Paris, nothing like living in the City of Love. But she had always been drawn to New York, ever since she was a little girl. _Yes,_ Paris had the twinkling lights of the Eiffel Tower, but New York City was _The City that Never Sleeps_. _The City of Dreams_ , the _Empire City_.

Brooke had flown back and forth from LA to New York for the past three years since they purchased a building for Davis Enterprises there, and once Peyton had left LA, each time Brooke found herself in New York, by the end of the business trip she didn’t want to leave.

Tree Hill hadn’t been home to her for a long time.

And now LA no longer felt like home either.

But New York? She was drawn to it. And maybe somehow, she could make it her home. Brooke could make a fresh start there with nothing and no one holding her back.

Victoria was staying in California to help run the LA offices, _thankfully._ Brooke had to give her the damn title of CEO for their LA branch just to keep Victoria from moving to New York with her.

But it was worth it not to have to physically see Victoria every day, and also know that she wouldn’t show up at her place randomly to annoy her. She would be almost three thousand miles away from her mother. Minus the occasional business meetings that Victoria would fly out to attend. But in the eight months since Brooke moved to Manhattan, she had only seen her mother in person five times.

Now _that,_ that was nice.

There were phone calls, and Skype calls, conference calls, e-mails and texts that Brooke had to deal with – but it was nice to put some literal distance between them.

Brooke hadn’t really gone out much since moving to New York, but after living in the City for two months, she had made her first friend.

_Nate Archibald._

After his newspaper/news-site _The Spectator,_ ran a bogus story about Clothes over Bro’s using actual animal fur, and not faux. She had been livid when the story first came across her desk. Some of the board members wanted to handle it through lawyers and take legal action against the news-outlet, but Hell hath no fury like Brooke Davis pissed off.

When the feisty brunette stormed into The Spectator, heels clicking against the floor causing every reporters’ head to turn – she headed straight to the editor’s office.

 _“This story-”_ Brooke said through gritted teeth as she held up the newspaper article. _“Is complete and utter bullshit! I am not, never had, and never will use animal fur in any of my designs!”_ She threw the newspaper at the man.

He was handsome, but Brooke was pissed enough to see past his handsome. He looked at her with amused blue eyes and a small smile.

_“Is your news-outlet known for running fake stories? If not, you’re about to lose a whole lot of credibility when I prove that I use faux-fur! I have a seven-year-old Godson who has a furry rabbit named Chester who happens to be his best friend – why would I ever use dead furry woodland creatures for damn coat when that would break his heart!”_

He had chuckled, nodding his head. They sat down and Brooke showed him proof that her company has never used animal fur. She had even told him, off the record, that she thought that even faux-fur was tacky. _“Why would you want to walk around wearing the fake skin of a leopard? It’s disgusting! Would anyone be caught dead walking around in a dead person’s left-over skin? No. So why wear a dead animals fur? Even if it’s fake. It’s tacky.”_

The story had been retracted, along with a public apology, and a new article was run in its place about the designer, who had a strong stance against animal cruelty.

Brooke had asked Nate to tell her who had started the rumor she was using animal fur, but he told her he couldn’t reveal his sources. One of the biggest rules of journalism. But he did invite her out to dinner with him and his fiancée.  

She thought about saying no, simply for that fact that he ran the bogus news story in the first place, but she had to remind herself that he retracted it, and literally praised her in the new article. One he wrote himself. (He told her it wasn’t very often that he wrote for the paper). And even though Brooke didn’t owe Nate Archibald anything, she agreed to go. Because she was lonely. And going out to dinner with Nate and his fiancée seemed like a pleasant idea.

That’s when she met Serena Van der Woodsen. Nates bride-to-be. They told her the story of how they got together, well _stories,_ they were together and not together many times throughout the years. Serena had even been briefly married to her high-school sweetheart, but that hadn’t worked out. That was when Nate and Serena rekindled their relationship.

The two fell in love all over again.

 _“People that are meant to be together always find their way in the end.”_ Brooke had told them. It was something she said a long time ago, her junior year while she was dating Lucas Scott. They had been talking about Keith and Karen, but deep down inside, Brooke was saying those words to him about their relationship. Little did she know, that he was cheating on her with her best friend by then.

 _“I love that!”_ Serena had beamed at her words.

Serena Van der Woodsen was probably one of the most cheerful people Brooke had ever met. _Ever._ And it wasn’t in an overwhelming, annoying type of way either. It was comforting. That girl’s energy could probably make even the saddest or most cynical person in the world crack a little smile.

Brooke and Serena had become quick friends, going out for lunch during the week, sometimes Nate and Serena would invite the brunette over for dinner on weekends as well. A few weeks after becoming friends with the two, Brooke saw Serena in a bad mood for the first time.

 _“I love her. I do. But…it’s hideous!”_ Serena groaned, handing over the papers she had been holding. Brooke looked at the sketches that had been given to Serena by her best friend, and tried her best to hide her distaste for the design.

But Serena clearly saw through that.

 _“Exactly!”_ Serena huffed upon seeing Brookes reaction.

 _“It’s not,”_ Brookes face pinched while she tried to come up with a polite response. _“The worst wedding dress I’ve ever seen. I mean, the eighties were a thing, need I remind you.”_

 _“She designed my first wedding dress and it was absolutely beautiful! But this,”_ She motioned to the sketch that Brooke had placed on the table, studying it more while her mouth was still pinched. _“It’s just…not me.”_

Brooke looked back up at Serena with a sympathetic smile. _“You should tell her. Maybe give her some ideas of what you might like.”_

Serena had let out a loud, almost child-like giggle. _“Blair Waldorf does not take criticism well. One time in high school she slashed our English teachers tires after he told her that her story felt ‘forced’ during a creative writing assignment.”_

Brooke had to laugh at that.

The two young women parted after lunch and when Brooke got back to her office she began to sketch a dress with Serena in mind. She hadn’t even thought of showing it to Serena, not after hearing about her tire-slashing BFF. Especially since Blair Waldorf was already Brookes competition, running Waldorf Designs, a company originally started by her mother; Eleanor Waldorf.

It’d be a lie to say Brooke hadn’t owned almost every single dress Eleanor designed while she was in high school back in Tree Hill.

Eleanor Waldorf had been one of Brookes biggest fashion inspirations.

And Victoria had hated it for some reason – she even went as far as to burn the very first dress Brooke bought from Waldorf Designs.

Serena ended up seeing the design Brooke sketched anyways when she showed up at her office with coffee the next day, her blue eyes lighting up the moment her eyes landed on the sketch that sat on Brookes desk.

 _“This!”_ Serena snatched the design off of Brookes desk. _“I don’t know how it’s possible – but this is exactly what I wanted from Blair!”_

 _“It’s nothing,”_ Brooke tried to brush it off.

 _“It’s everything!”_ Serena disagreed with her. _“I need it! Please, Brooke. I will do anything to get you to make that dress for me!”_

She had to laugh while she shook her head. _“Didn’t you just tell me yesterday that Blair Waldorf once slashed the tires of someone she didn’t like? Why would I step on her toes by designing her best friend’s wedding dress?”_

Serena sighed, taking a seat in the chair on the other side of Brookes desk. _“Look, Blair designed my first dress. Which was beautiful. I loved it. But your design,”_ She clutched the sketch to her chest. _“It’s everything I want and more…I can see myself wearing this dress when I walk down the aisle to marry Nate — who will be crying at the altar waiting for me because I look so damn good in this dress!”_ Brooke had to laugh at that, but Serena continued on, _“I can see myself dancing with him in front of all our friends and family, him spinning me and the bottoms flowing like it’s magic! Because it IS magic! This design...Brooke, it’s magic.”_

Brooke quirked her brow up and narrowed her eyes at Serena with a little smirk. The blonde was really using a hell of a lot of flattery to get Brooke to make the wedding dress.

_“I will go to Blair and ask her to come up with another design, and if I fall in love with it and it touches my heart the way this dress does…I promise I’ll never mention it again. But if I can’t let go of this dress…please?”_

The brunette shook her head with a playful huff. _“Fine,”_ she drew out the word. _“But you have to at least give Blairs second design a chance. Look at it with open eyes, okay?”_

 _“I will! I promise!”_ Serena all but bounced in her chair.

In the end, Blairs second design wasn’t any better. Neither was her third design that she gave the blonde. After Serena told her she was going with a different dress, Blair had demanded Serena tell her who the designer she was going with was. _“Who are you betraying me with?”_ Serena had told Brooke those were the words her best friend used.

But Serena kept her mouth shut.

Two months before the wedding, almost every news-outlet got the story that Clothes over Bro’s designer, Brooke Davis, had designed Serena Van der Woodsen.

That’s when the perfectly manicured claws came out.

Blair had tried her absolute best to try and destroy Brookes career.

Somehow, she’d find out about meetings Brooke had with potential sellers and show up with her own designs.

Unluckily for Blair though, the sellers would always go with Brookes designs.

 _“I will destroy you!”_ Blair had said in anger after the sixth meeting she crashed to try and swipe the deal from Brooke, but ended up crashing and burning.

 _“Listen up, I know you might have been Queen B in high school, but I got news for you. So was I. And even though we are so far out of high school – I don’t plan on giving up that title easily.”_ Brooke had smirked and turned away from Blair before stopping and looking over her shoulder. _“Word of advice; next time you show up to another one of my meetings to try and swipe a seller from me – maybe bring some designs for people under the age of sixty. I mean, I see that’s your buyers age-range lately, but maybe consider something for the younger crowd.”_

Brooke hadn’t wanted to be a bitch. But she was sick of Blair Waldorf trying to ruin her company by trash-talking her name all over the Upper East Side to anyone who would listen. The bitch had even gone as far as to dig up dirt on Brooke.

And of course, Blair found some.

Brooke woke up to her phone ringing non-stop and over four hundred e-mails, and too many texts to count.

Every damn gossip website, even the damn d-list gossip sites played her high-school time capsule video entry on a loop. _Well,_ the only part that seemed to matter to every hungry vulture. When the video first came out after Rachel released it their senior year, Brooke had been mortified.

Now it just made her furious.

Blair Waldorf didn’t know everything that happened because of that damn time capsule video. She didn’t know that Brooke stood ten feet away from Jimmy Edwards as he held a gun up at her and fired, missing Brooke, but hitting Peyton. Blair didn’t know that Keith Scott died that day when he went inside to try and talk to Jimmy, who he ultimately couldn’t save. She didn’t know about the tragedy that was left in the wake of that damn time capsule video being released. Karen lost the love of her life, Lily never got to know her father, Dan Scott was currently still in prison for killing Keith that day.

If the time capsule had never been released, Keith wouldn’t have walked into that school, and Dan wouldn’t have found the perfect opportunity to end his life out of hatred and spite. Jimmy would have never shown up to school with a gun, he wouldn’t have ended up killing himself.

Blair Waldorf _did not_ know.

It wasn’t humiliating to Brooke that there were thousands, if not more, gifs of her tits on a constant loop all over the web. She had already been through that when Rachel put it online. Then again social media wasn’t as popular as it was today back then – none of that bothered her. Hell, she ranked number twenty-three on Limewire back when it was first released.

And because of her boob flashing, Brooke had ended up coming up with an awesome way to sell tickets for Peyton’s birth-mothers benefit concert.

Those posters had ended up circling the web now too.

None of that mattered to her though.

It was the memory that came with it all.  

Brooke wasn’t the only one affected by the time-capsule release, even now. Peyton, Lucas, Nathan, and Haley had all called her asking her if she was okay when they saw it online. Brooke didn’t worry about herself or her image, she worried about them all. Even if it was only her part of the capsule, they all knew the devastation that came after it had been released their senior year of high-school. Peyton told Brooke that she was going to fly out to New York and knock Blair Waldorf out. Haley suggested suing her. But Brooke had no proof that Blair was the one to find and send out the video to every gossip site.

So…Brooke decided to do what she did the last time. Take the opportunity she was given, and create something out of it.  

 _No,_ she didn’t pose for playboy. Enough people had seen her boobs. She did, however, do a photoshoot for her own magazine.

 

 

 

**_Brooke Davis:_ **

_A Tell All_

_A Tragedy_

_“Yeah, you’ve seen my boobs. I’ve been told they are great._

_But that’s not the only thing that came out from that leak.”_

 

 

 

The article, written by Nate Archibald, who she offered to pay for his service only to have him tell her he’d do it for free, was an interview where Brooke recanted the day and the days after the release of the time-capsule. She went on to talk about bullying, and the organizations and charities she was a part of to help kids, teens, and even adults, who are bullied on a daily basis, have a safe platform to tell their stories.

Movements to try and make bullying a thing of the past, something that she was still fighting for.

 

 

 **_BROOKE DAVIS:_ ** _I don’t know who released the video, but I hope they can take something from this. That actions have consequences, sometimes small, sometimes devastating. By putting the video online to try and humiliate me – it only opened up old wounds, memories that a lot of people have tried to push behind them but never can. People died. A mother lost her son. A woman lost the love of her life, the child growing inside her lost the father she never even got a chance to know. Two young men lost their uncle whom they loved so dearly. I’m not embarrassed that the world has seen my tits. I’m embarrassed for the person who released the video. Because they didn’t know all that would come from it._

 

 

Brooke had gone on to talk about gun violence, and the horrifying and unforgivable number of school shootings there have been since her own. She detailed what it was like to have a gun pointed right at her, along with the fear she felt knowing that the people she loved were still inside the school after she had gotten out.

B-Davis Couture’s website had crashed that day from how many people had logged on to read the article, and the sales numbers from the magazine were the highest the magazine had ever had.

Serena had come to her after the video came out, apologizing for it happening. They both knew who was behind the leak. There was no doubt in their mind.

_“Blair has sunk pretty low before, but that was back when we were in high-school. We’re adults now! All of this because of a design!”_

Brooke had bit down on her lip before she spoke. _“Well, actually. I may have let my bitch out after Blair kept showing up at my meetings with sellers to try and steal them from me.”_

_“What’d you say?”_

The brunette shrugged innocently. _“Something along the lines of, don’t fuck with me. You design old lady clothes. But in a classier way…kinda.”_

But Serena was still furious with Blair.

Brooke told her not to be, that when the article came out something good might come out of it. And that maybe Blair would realize that she’s not in high-school anymore and grow up a little.

A week after the article came out, Blair showed up to Davis Enterprises, a peace offering in hand.

 _“I’m don’t exactly handle being number-two very well.”_ Blair told Brooke as she handed over a box of Godiva chocolates, Brooke’s absolute favorite. “ _Not in my career, and not when it comes to being Serena’s best friend.”_  

Brooke didn’t say anything, simply sat behind her desk in her chair with a raised brow and an unamused expression on her face.

_“For most of my life…I haven’t been put first. My mom always chose her work over me, my Dad chose his model boyfriend over me, boyfriends chose my best friend over me. My ex-husband chose a hotel over me. Hell, my son even chooses his Dad over me. The one thing I have always been number one at was my career, and being Serena’s best friend. Until you came around.”_

Blair paused, fixing her jacket, probably out of nervous habit more than there being anything wrong with the jacket.

_“When I turned twenty-one, my mom handed over her empire to me. Naming me CEO. I was terrified. overwhelmed is an understatement. But once I got the hang of it…I loved it. It was everything to me. I was number one…and then suddenly you show up. Everyone is going on and on about a designer from LA who is taking the fashion world by storm. I think I’ve hated you since you designed that dress for Amy Adams that she wore to the Oscars. Everyone would not shut up about it. Serena talked about it for a year.”_

She sighed.

 _“So...when you showed up in New York I was more than a little furious. Why did you have to move to New York? You already had LA. Why couldn’t I keep New York? You were taking something from me and you didn’t even know it.”_ Blair shook her head. _“And then you and Serena became friends. Obviously, that pissed me off.”_

The way she said it had Brooke fighting against a small smile.

 _“And then you designed this absolutely breathtakingly beautiful wedding dress that Serena loved more than mine. More than any of the designs I showed her after. You hadn’t just taken New York from me, you were taking my best friend too. Serena was choosing you. And I was being left behind again. Look, I know my designs don’t exactly market to younger people, as you so kindly put it.”_ She said in a flat tone. _“But I love my designs. I wear them. Serena used to wear them. And when you took a jab at them…it lit the fuse.”_

Brooke felt bad. The fashion industry could be cut-throat. Not just for the models. The designers were constantly at each other’s throats as well. At least, that was Brookes experience. But she had always been professional about it. But there was something about Blair…maybe it was because a little part of Blair reminded her of herself. Brooke wanted to knock her down a peg or two. Show her who was on top. It wasn’t professional.

_“I’m sorry I put the video online. I didn’t know everything that happened back when you were in high school when it first came out. All I knew was that there was a video of you flashing the camera and I thought if I released it, it’d hurt you somehow. Professionally or emotionally. I was acting like high school Blair because I was feeling threatened and hurt. And without knowing it, I ended up hurting people I didn’t even know…and I’m…sorry.”_

Brooke sat in her chair for a long moment, letting Blair's apology and words sink in. Sitting forward, Brooke reached for the box of chocolates and opened it up, grabbing a piece and bringing it to her mouth. But before she took a bite, she looked to Blair with a raised brow.

_“These aren’t poisoned, are they?”_

Blair had smiled. And it was the first time she saw the woman smile — well, a smile that wasn’t fake.

 _“Too many people saw me walking in holding the box for me to try and poison you.”_ She smirked.

Brooke smiled and took a bite of the chocolate. And it was probably the best chocolate she ever tasted. And Blair had been telling the truth, it wasn’t poisoned.

The two fashion designers weren’t exactly friends after that. But Blair did stop actively trying to destroy Brooke. And Brooke didn’t grimace whenever someone mentioned Blairs name. Brooke had even put some distance between her and Serena so she and Blair could make-up.

But the week before the wedding Blair and Brooke were forced to be around each other at dress fittings. Blair hadn’t known that not only did Brooke designed the wedding dress, but her bridesmaid dress as well.

Blair had eyed the dress up and down, looking for any mistake Brooke could have made. But eventually gave up and put it on. She looked at herself in the mirror as Brooke did the final measurements for the dress, her head moving from one side to the other every few minutes.

 _“Thank you for not making something atrocious for me to wear.”_ Blair had said. _“God knows I deserve to have you dress me up in a hideous dress.”_

Brooke had to chuckle, biting down on her lower lip to sober up. _“The thought did cross my mind. But this day isn’t about me. It’s about Serena. And I had already started the design before you started being a bitch to me.”_

When she looked up, Blair was smiling in the mirror at her words.

Brooke stood in the room, doing the finishing touches to Serena’s dress. She trusted Blair enough to know that if something went wrong with her bridesmaid dress, she’d know how to fix it herself.

Today was the wedding – and Brooke wondered who was more nervous out of the three women in the room.

Serena was the least worried, thrilled that she was marrying the man of her dreams.

Blair and Brooke on the other-hand were tied at first for who was stressed out the most.

Blair, the wedding planner, was worried about every little thing that could possibly go wrong. While Brooke was stressed about something happening to the dress. She was constantly fidgeting with the dress to make sure it was perfect, walking around Serena every so often to get the whole view before she would get back on her knees and start fidgeting with the dress again.

Eventually Brooke had to be escorted to her seat by an usher who Blair had called in to get her.

And in classic Blair fashion, Brooke was seated in the very last row. She had to smirk. Blair had gotten the last laugh with that one. But she wasn’t pissed about it.

She was seated between two old men who leered at her breasts every five seconds. _Obviously,_ they had seen the video. It also didn’t help that Brooke wore a dress that accentuated her breasts. The red fabric hugging the curves beautifully. But after five minutes of the horny old men all but drooling all over her, Brooke wrapped her shawl around her shoulders, blocking her cleavage from view.  

That’s when she heard someone laughing.

Brooke turned her head slightly, moving forward to see a man a couple seats down in the same row grinning at her.

“Who’d you piss off to get stuck in the last row?”

Brooke rolled her eyes, sitting back in her seat.

He continued on anyway. “Were you one of the groom’s ex-girlfriends? Or perhaps you’re one of the brides many ex-siblings that her mother forced her to invite.”

She knew he couldn’t see her, so she felt free to smile at that. Serena had told her about her mother’s many ex-husbands and her many ex-siblings.

“I designed the wedding dress.” Brooke finally answered him.

“Oh,” He drew out the word like a wince. “How badly did you fuck it up?”

Brooke leaned forward again, a glare directed at the man. “My designs are flawless, I’ll have you know. And the moment everyone sees Serena, they’re going to have their breath taken away.” Brooke popped an attitude at him. “I wouldn’t be surprised if 911 has to be called because people are in need of oxygen tanks.”

He laughed, head falling back.

Brooke looked him over.

He was handsome. _Very._ Almost in an old Hollywood type of way. His eyes stood out the most, a shade of grey-blue that could easily make any woman melt. Probably a lot of men too. He had a sharp jawline and very nice lips. His smile was probably the second thing that stood out to Brooke, big and bright and a bit alluring. He had brown hair, and Brooke tried her best to try and figure out who the hell he was. He definitely looked familiar. But she couldn’t place him.

He was wearing all black.

Black trousers, a black dress shirt under his black suit jacket, and a black tie.

Normally Brooke would think that was a bit of an overkill. Choosing to wear a suit that was that was entirely made up of all black pieces. But when she looked at him, it suited him. And he was definitely able to pull it off.

He was looking at her now, a smile still playing on his lips.

Brooke could hear the man that she sat next to, who was on the side Mr. black suit sat, snoring quietly and shook her head in annoyance. The other old man on her other side nearer to the aisle kept making hacking noises to clear his throat. The fashion designer groaned before sitting back down into the chair.

“You know,” the man in the black suit said after a few minutes. “I’m pretty sure Blair is not _that_ much of a seating chart Nazi to stop the wedding if she saw you weren’t in your assigned seat.”

Brooke leaned forward again and raised her brow at him.

“The seat next to me is open.” He suggested with a smirk.

Brooke had to roll her eyes at that, but quickly got up the moment the hacking noises started up again. She took the open seat next to the man in black.

They sat there in silence for a while before Brooke spoke up. “What’d you do to piss off the seating charter Nazi?” She asked.

He chuckled. “Well,” he cleared his throat. “I slept with her, for one.”

Brooke tried not to laugh at that.

“And for another, I used to…have some sort of a thing with the bride.”

She was surprised to hear that. “You and Serena dated?” Brooke asked. “Wait,” She leaned in closer. “You’re not her ex-husband and are planning on standing up after the _‘speak now or forever hold your peace’_ part, are you?”

He leaned closer to her too, his voice in a low whisper. “If I am. Are you going to have me kicked out?”

“Yes.” Brooke smirked. “Like I said, the wedding dress is too beautiful to be wasted on you standing up to try and stop the wedding.”

The man laughed, licking at his lips. “I’m not Dan Humphrey. Serena and I were just a…fling, I suppose.” He looked away from her.

“You two weren’t serious?” Brooke asked, curious now from the way his voice had changed.

He shrugged. “Perhaps we could have been.”

Brooke nodded, looking forward as well.

She then turned back to the man in all black. “Okay, this is a legitimate question now. You aren’t going to try and stop the wedding, are you?” Brooke asked “Because I _will_ tackle you if you stand up during the ceremony.”

The man looked over at her, the corners of his eyes crinkling as he smiled at her, shaking his head. “I’m not here to stop the wedding.” He assured her. “Though, getting tackled by you might seem like a fun time.” He smirked. Brooke rolled her eyes and looked away from him, fighting a smile. “Carter Baizen.” He said next, holding out his hand in front of her.

Brooke looked back at him and took a moment, debating whether or not to take his hand. But she did in the end. “Brooke Davis.”

“I know.” Carter smirked while he let go of her hand after shaking it.

She raised her brow in confusion.

He simply looked down at her chest and bit down on his lower lip and smiled when he looked back up at her. Making it obvious how he knew her

“ _Great._ ” Brooke said sarcastically.

He chuckled again.

“Wait,” Brooke looked at him again. “What did you say your name was again?”

“Carter Baizen.”

Brookes eyes widened in amusement as she fought hard against a smile, her lips pressing together in a thin line. “Hm.”

Carter gave her the same raised brow she had given him just moments earlier. “What?”

“Nothing,” she shrugged, looking back straight ahead again. “It’s just nice to finally put a face to the name.” Brooke placed her hands in her lap and folded them.

“Face to the name?” Carter said in amusement. “What exactly have you heard about me, Ms. Davis?”

She turned her head slightly to look at him. “Like I said, I designed the wedding dress. I’m a designer. I have a lot of models working for me. Many of which you have…” Brooke smirked and raised her eyebrows suggestively before turning back to face forward.

“I see.” Carter said, she could feel him shifting in his seat.

Silence.

“Were they at least positive reviews?”

Brooke laughed, only to cover her mouth when the music began to play, and the wedding party began to walk down the aisle. Brooke had to bite down on her tongue to keep laughter from bubbling out after his comment as Nate walked to the very front, waiting for Serena. And when the bride finally made her appearance, Brooke smirked in victory when she heard the room gasp at the sight of her.

She tilted her head to the side, whispering to Carter. “Told ya.”

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

The large room that the wedding guests were taken into was grander than the outdoor wedding. It was, just like Serena’s wedding dress, breathtaking. Brooke had heard some ladies speaking in not so hushed voices about how Blair Waldorf was probably creating the wedding she dreamed that she and her ex-husband could have had. _“Blair Waldorf, always one to over-compensate. She probably wishes this was the wedding she could have had.  It’s not like their wedding was some epic event. They were arrested only seconds after they said I do. I heard when Chuck left her last year, it was for their son’s nanny.”_

_“Really? I heard it was because the woman who sold him his latest hotel said she wouldn’t do business with him while he associated himself with a Waldorf.”_

Brooke had to physically stop herself from saying something. She had wanted to, not because she was Blair's friend now, but because she didn’t like the fact that these women were talking negatively about another woman, someone they clearly knew. _Yes,_ Blair was a bitch. But Brooke also believed that in this day and age, women should always support other women. It was hard enough living in a man-run world, women shouldn’t be putting each other down, they should be lifting each other up. And even though Brooke didn’t exactly like Blair, she still felt the need to defend her to these women.

But she knew that if she opened her mouth to them, she’d end up making a scene. And today was about Serena and Nate, her first real friends in New York, and them celebrating their love and future together.

Instead, she walked away to find the table she was assigned too. And surprisingly, Blair hadn’t had her seated at the worst table too. Though, there were plenty of other very nice tables with a better view of the dance floor, it was better than being seated at the very back.

“Family and friends, ladies and gentlemen,” Blair stood in the center of the dance floor, a big smile on her face. “It is my absolute honor to present you; Mr. and Mrs. Nate Archibald.”

Brooke smiled, watching the two enter the room, their linked hands raised in the air in celebration while they made their way to the center. She chuckled, watching them beam at one another as the whole room clapped for them happily. The brunette looked around the table, no one she knew (though that wasn’t surprising,) was sitting at the table with her. Just, from the looks of it, a bunch of married couples. Which meant Brooke was the only single person at the table.

 _Of course,_ she thought in humor. There couldn’t be at least one other single person to sit at the table too?

Brooke thought back on Nathan and Haley’s wedding, all those years ago. Just two teenagers, getting married for the _second_ time. She smiled at that, shaking her head. That had been a hard day for her – the night before, Peyton had told her that she still had feelings for Lucas. And the entire day she tried to convince herself that Lucas didn’t reciprocate those feelings, that he was _hers,_ not Peyton’s. That he wouldn’t hurt her again.

In the end, he did.

_Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me._

Brooke listened as Nate spoke, thanking everyone for coming to celebrate with them today. And not to worry, that the party was just beginning. Everyone laughed at that. He spoke about Serena to everyone, all the while looking at his wife, telling them all how long he had waited for this day. That no matter the hardships they went through, that it wouldn’t matter – it never mattered before. They would be there for one another, together, always. Nate told Serena that he had been in love with her since they were teenagers, even when he wasn’t supposed to be. That he loved her through all the years, _again_ , even when he wasn’t supposed to. That the one constant thing in his life was the love he felt for Serena.

“-A few months ago, my _wife,_ ” He smiled at Serena when he said the word. “-And I, were told something by a new and close friend of ours,” Nate looked into the crowd, surprisingly able to find Brooke out of the numerous guests, and hundreds of tables, he smiled when his eyes found her. “ _People that are meant to be together always find their way in the end.”_

She looked down, smiling sadly before looking back up at Nate.

“She hadn’t known us for very long when she said that…but it stuck with us. And it meant something to us. _People that are meant to be together always find their way in the end,_ ” He smiled, looking down at Serena now. “I can’t think of a more appropriate saying to describe mine and Serena’s relationship. We found our way. And we’re not letting go.” He looked back to Brooke and winked. She smiled a genuine smile at that, giving him a little nod of her head.

Serena went on to thank everyone as well before Blair stole the microphone from her and signaled for the music to start playing.

Brooke watched as the two danced together, both smiling wide at the other, Nate whispering in her ear every once in while causing her to throw her head back and laugh. At one point he even dipped her, causing the room to break out in another applause.

She listened to the words of the song, feeling tears form in her eyes and quickly grabbed her phone, taking a short video and sending it to Peyton, asking her if she knew what the song was that they were dancing to.

 

 

_Oh, love, let me see inside your heart_

_All the cracks and broken parts_

_The shadows and the light_

_There’s no need to hide_

 

_Cause I’m on fire like a thousand suns_

_I couldn’t put it out even if I wanted to_

_These flames tonight_

_Look into my eyes and say you me, too_

_Like I want you_

 

 

By the time the song had ended, and Brooke had discreetly wiped away the few tears that had fallen, Peyton had texted her back.

 

**Peyton Sawyer-Scott (7:55pm):**

_It’s called Hunger by Ross Copperman_

_I bet you cried._

_Fifty bucks_

 

 

Brooke smiled, sniffling a little before quickly replying.

 

 

**Brooke Davis (7:56om):**

_Which would you prefer I send?_

_Cash or check?_

 

 

She slipped her phone into her clutch after sending the text. It’d be rude to text Peyton the entire wedding. It was also rude to text Peyton seeing as she was five hours ahead of Brooke while in London. But Peyton rarely slept these days, always out for work to try and find the next big artist to sign to her record label.

There was so much food.

An eight-course meal, in fact.

And Brooke was hungry enough to try just about each plate.

It had been a while since Brooke had been fed this well. Her go-to meals lately consisted of take-out, or left-over take-out. And of course, when Serena and Nate would invite her over for dinner, but with the wedding having been so near it had been a while since she was over at their place for dinner.

Brooke remembered her mother calling her furious when there had been a picture of Brooke online from a paparazzi, eating pizza while walking down the street.

 _“You are a world-wide known fashion designer, Brooke! You cannot be seen eating that disgusting grease covered, carb-loaded, street vender food!”_ Victoria huffed in disgust.

 _“For the record, it wasn’t from a street vendor. I got a slice from a pizzeria. I had to go to a meeting and I was starving so I grabbed a piece. It’s not the end of the world, Victoria.”_ She shot back at her mother. _“Also, one more thing; I am not a little girl anymore. You do not get to tell me what I can and cannot eat. If I want to eat a slice of pizza every day for the rest of my life – I will. And you can’t do anything about!”_ She had hung up in anger.

Around the sixth course, Brooke was finally starting to feel full. Angry at herself for not going easy. She knew that the last two plates would be desert. And that had always been Brookes favorite part of any wedding she’d ever gone too.

Well, expect one.

It had been some non-gluten, non-dairy, non-taste type of dessert that Brooke had spit in her napkin when no one was looking.

Brooke pushed her plate away, politely telling the waiter when they came with the next course that she wouldn’t be having any. Frowning when she saw the molten lava cake. Instead, asking for another glass of champagne the next time they brought out another course.

After the eight-course meal, most of the guests, and all of Brookes table, had found their way to the center of the room, dancing together to the songs playing. She recognized some, mostly the ones from boy-bands from the 90’s that she used to make Peyton listen to. She laughed, thinking of how Peyton would groan, cover her ears and pretend that she hated it. Brooke knew her better than to believe that.

Brooke pulled her phone out of her clutch to check the time, knowing that the dinner was at least an hour and a half long. It was almost 10pm, and no one seemed to be tired.

_The City that Never Sleeps_

Everyone one just danced and laughed and drank.

She had thought about going over to the table where Nate and Serena sat, but the two were so absorbed in the other that they probably wouldn’t even notice if she was standing right in front of them, screaming their names.

Blair was on the end of the table, her body turned away from Nate and Serena, and on Nates side, there was a man Brooke recognized from pictures in the married couples home. She couldn’t remember his name – but Brooke was almost positive that the man was Blair’s ex-husband.

The absolute look of discomfort on Blairs face whenever the man would speak was enough for Brooke to believe her own suspicions.

She felt pity for Blair, it had to be a very uncomfortable situation.

Probably almost as uncomfortable as watching the first guy you ever truly loved marry your best friend.

Something she and Blair had in common.

Serena had mentioned that Blair and Nate had dated, that she had betrayed Blair by sleeping with him one drunken night. But that no matter how hard she tried to fight her feelings for Nate, no matter how hard she tried to push them down for the sake of her friendship with Blair – it was a constant feeling.

Serena and Nate

Peyton and Lucas

It seemed pretty clear that being the third person in those love triangles never ends well.

But in the end, it seemed that Blair was just as happy for Nate and Serena to finally be together as Brooke was for Peyton and Lucas.

When Blair gave her maid of honor toast, Brooke smiled – feeling nostalgic for Nathan and Haley’s wedding again. Her speech had been hard to get through, mostly because right before the toast she and Lucas had had a huge fight, Brooke leaving in tears that she quickly and angrily wiped away before getting up to the microphone and gave her speech about Nathan and Haley.

 _“I’m not the most eloquent speaker, so I thought I’d borrow a few words from Shakespeare. ‘Love is not love which alters when it alteration finds.’ When life gets hard, when things change…true love remains the same.”_ Her own speech from Nathan and Haley’s wedding echoed in her head. _“I look at Nathan and Haley and somehow I feel safer, I don’t know if I can explain that but…they give me hope. And I’m afraid to say it out loud because maybe if life finds out, it’ll try and beat it out of them and…that would be a shame. Because we could all use a little hope sometimes, ya know? That feeling that everything is going to be okay. And that there’s going to be someone there to help make sure of that. So…here’s to Nathan and Haley. Here’s to hope. And here’s to a love that will not alter.”_

Blair's speech was beautiful, calling Nate and Serena’s love ‘mythic’ something no one could ever come between – _even someone who is beautiful, intelligent, funny,_ and so on and so on until the people laughed, all knowing she was referring to herself and her former relationships with Nate. Blair then went on to say that Serena and Nate weren’t each other’s soulmates, because she and Serena were soulmates, that earned another laugh.

“No,” Blair smiled, looking at Nate and Serena. “These two…they’re each other’s Northern Star. They are each other’s _home._ ”

Blair’s ex-husband, she found out that his name was Chuck Bass when the couple next to her began to whisper to one another about him and how awkward this must be for the ex-husband and wife, all the while giggling, Brooke had glared at them and they looked away from her in embarrassment that she had heard them, _Chuck_ , had given his speech. But Brooke didn’t really pay mind to that – her attention was on Blair, who seemed to be on the verge of tears as he spoke.

She felt something for Blair, not pity anymore, more along the lines of empathy.

Everyone began to dance again after Chuck sat down.

Nate taking Serena by the hand and leading her to the center of the floor.

“Ya know,” The empty seat next to her slid out as someone sat down. Brooke turned her head a bit to see it was Carter who was now sitting next to her. “-I don’t know who looks sadder right now. You or Waldorf.”

Brooke kinked her brow up at his words.

“Just an observation.” He added with a smirk.

“I’m not sad.” Brooke disagreed with him.

He scrunched his nose, eyes as well and nodded his head. “Yeah, tell that to your face.” Brooke glared at him. “Let me guess, you’re sitting here thinking about how nice it would be to be loved by someone. To get married.”

She narrowed her eyes at him in an annoyed look. “How do you know I’m not already loved like that? Maybe I have someone waiting at home for me right now. Maybe I’m already married.”

“Nope.” Carter shook his head. “I’ve done my research.”

Again, Brooke kinked her eyebrow up. This time in amusement. “Research?” She repeated.

Carter smiled at her, a sly one, one that she was sure got a lot of women into bed – but it wouldn’t work with her.

“You can’t really call seeing my tits online ‘ _research’_ ” She used air-quotes.

He let out a loud laugh at that, his mouth spread into a wide grin. Carter then licked at his lower lip before biting down on it for a short second. Perfect white teeth grazing over it in that short while. Carter Baizen had a very nice mouth.

Brooke pushed that thought away.

“I won’t lie and say I didn’t see the video. They’re very nice by the way,” He motioned to her chest. Brooke felt her face flush and looked away from him to compose herself. “But I have read about you.”

She looked back at Carter. “The article?” Brooke questioned – knowing that there was probably no way he could have read about her before the leaked video.  Sitting next to him in such close proximity knowing that he had read the article where she poured her heart out about the day of the school shooting left Brooke feeling like in that moment, she was sitting in the chair next to him completely naked.

“I read it.” He admitted. “I read a few other too.” Brooke looked at him skeptically at that. He laughed. “I did. I _may_ have read them while sitting at my shitty table over there,” He pointed to a table all the way in the back, almost unseen. “-I had to know who I let sit next to me during the wedding. You did threaten to tackle me. I had to make sure there were no pending charges of assault or arrest warrants with your name on them.”

Brooke gave into a throaty chuckle.

“I have been arrested once.” Brooke then admitted. Carter gave her a look that told her he didn’t buy her story. “I did! When I was seventeen!”

“For what? Buying beer while underage in _North Carolina,_ ” He used a southern drawl causing Brooke to roll her eyes.

“I, in no way, sound like that. And neither does anyone else I grew up with in my town.” She scoffed. “And for the record, it wasn’t for underage drinking. It was for shoplifting.”

“I apologize, ma’am.” He continued on with the southern drawl.

“I _really_ regret taking your offer to sit next to you.” She said, trying to hide her amusement by folding her arms over her chest and looking away from him.

He chuckled. “So, you shoplifted. Some sort of rich girl teen rebellion?”

“ _No,_ ” She looked back at him, green eyes narrowed at his blue ones. “I worked at a store that I showed some of my early designs to. They took them and gave them to corporate and then started selling them. I asked how much I was making and they said nothing – so I took all the clothes with my designs on them. Technically they belonged to me. I deserved to get paid for that.”  

Brooke watched as his teeth scraped over his lower lip again as he grinned at her.

“So, it was an act of rebellion.”

“If we’re getting technical, yes.” Brooke agreed. “But at that time, I wasn’t rich. I had been. But then my father lost his job along with all the money. Hence, why I worked at that shit-hole store. Who, by the way, are not any of the department stores I allow to sell my clothes. And believe me, they’ve offered me a _lot_ of money to let them.”

“But you still don’t.” He smirked, Carter sounded impressed.

“Nope. And I never will.”

“Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned.”

“-Hell hath no fury like Brooke Davis pissed off.” She corrected him.

“I’ll remember that.” He continued to smirk, his tongue dashing over his lower lip now. “You wanna dance?” Carter asked her next.

She thought on it, knowing that of all the guest from this wedding, dancing with Serena’s ex… _something,_ probably wasn’t a good idea. Mostly because she didn’t know what Carter would be getting out of it. Was he asking her to dance to try and make Serena jealous? If so, he’d fail. Serena had eyes for no one but Nate tonight. And more than likely the rest of her life.

“Are you asking me to try and make Serena jealous?”

“Nope.” He shook his head, holding out his hand in front of her. “I just want to dance with you.”

Brooke took in a breath, biting down on the inside of her cheek before she accepted his invitation, placing her hand in his and letting him pull her up from her seat. They walked over to where everyone was dancing, her hand still in his. Carter took a wide step away from Brooke, all the while still holding her hand, and then pulled at it hard, not a painful or rough hard, just hard enough to bring her body against his in a swift move.

Brooke had gasped at the action though, her eyes moving up to look into his as his hand pressed against her hip, slowly sliding to her back. The hand he was using to hold her own softly wrapped itself around hers. He smiled down at her a moment before they began to sway to the music.

She had never danced like this with anyone before.

It was different from a typical slow-dance. Almost as if it was somehow choreographed and she happened to know the steps. It was like one of those movies that she used to watch that would frustrate the hell out of her when everyone broke out into a dance – all knowing the exact moves and steps to take.

She remembered watching those movies with Nathan and Peyton while they dated and they’d make fun of her for getting so mad. _“It’s a movie, Brooke.”_ Peyton would remind her.

 _“I don’t care if it’s a movie. There has got to be at least an explanation at the end on why they all the sudden just break out into a dance. Have they done it before? Do they practice daily to get it down? It takes two weeks for my damn squad to get a routine down. How are they just picking this dance up like it’s nothing?”_ She’d rant. _“Clearly they have school assemblies that we’re not seeing where they all practice these dances.”_

 _“They don’t.”_ Nathan would ruin it for her.

 _“Dammit, Nathan! Stop ruining the ending of every movie we watch!”_ Brooke would smack at him.

 _“Brooke – how have you never seen Grease?”_ Peyton would say. _“It’s a classic!”_

Brooke would roll her eyes at that. _“I don’t spend my free time watching movies where people spontaneously break out into song and dance.”_

 _“You liked footloose.”_ Nathan would say.

_“Yeah. Because Kevin Bacon was hot back then. John Travolta is not hot. His hair looks like it’s been dipped in oil. The name of this movie is appropriate. I’ve never seen such greasy hair!”_

Peyton and Nathan would crack up into a fit of laughter after that.

Brooke let out another gasp when Carter moved their linked hands up high and then twirled her a bit away from him. She laughed when he pulled her back to him, his arm now moving around her waist to pull her closer.

“Did you also do research on dancing?” Brooke asked in amusement as they continued to sway together.

“No,” she felt his warm breath hit her ear. “I learned how to dance growing up.”

“Out of requirement or was it a hobby?” She moved her head a bit closer to him until her face was nearly pressed to his shoulder.

He chuckled, the air leaving his mouth tickling her neck. “You don’t grow up living on the Upper East Side without being forced to learn how to dance. There are such things as Cotillion Balls. _Or,_ as you may have referred them in the south; _Debutante Balls._ ” He used the southern drawl again. And Brooke would be lying if she said it didn’t cause a shiver to run down her spine.

But she pushed that away too.

“You sure do know a lot about Southern traditions for a Northerner.” She decided to say.

“Got to take an interest in something.” He chuckled. “Some people take interest in art, or science, politics. Me? I take an interest in the dances they hold in the south for girls who are coming of age.”

“That doesn’t make you sound like a pedophile at all.” Brooke replied in dry tone, only causing him to laugh. Brooke felt comfortable enough now to rest her head on his shoulder,an action that caused his arm to tightened around her more.

“You wanna get out of here?” He whispered in her ear.

Brooke slowly pulled away, looking up at him.

She shouldn’t.

“Yeah.”

_Well, fuck._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wrote this a long time ago and figured I'd post it to help me get out of my writing slump! Hope you guys enjoy! Also, I don't have a beta-reader for this story so sorry for any mistakes! Kudos/comments/feedback are always appreciated!


	2. True Disaster

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: smut

* * *

 

Brooke didn’t end up sleeping with Carter Baizen. She hadn’t even kissed him. By the time they got out of the building ready to catch a cab to whoever’s house they’d end up at, Brookes phone began to ring. 

She had pulled it out of her clutch, checking to see who it was. When she saw it was Victoria she let it go to voicemail. But that’s when she saw she had at least three other missed calls from her mother, as well as twenty new text messages. She groaned when she slid the messages open, only to be bombarded with more messages from her Victoria.

 

 

**Victoria Davis (11:20pm):**

_ You need call me back right now.  _

_ A supplier from France is calling you in ten minutes.  _

_ Answer your damn phone!  _

_ IMPORTANT! _

 

 

Brooke rolled her eyes at the use of all caps, her mother being extra dramatic as always. She sighed sadly when she looked back at Carter.  _ “I have someone calling me from France in about ten minutes and I can’t miss the call.”  _ She told him. 

Carter didn’t look overly-disappointed. He simply nodded his head and gave her a little smile. 

She bit down on her lip.  _ “Raincheck?”  _ She suggested. 

He grinned down at her now, taking her phone from her hands and typed in his contact information.  _ “Definitely.”  _ He agreed, handing it back to her. His hand lingered against her own, his eyes locking with hers. Just as Brooke began to move forward, hoping to end the night with a kiss – her phone started ringing again.

Her mother’s face plastered on the screen, killing any mood or moment between them. 

_ “I got to take this – or she’ll find some way to teleport here.” _

Carter laughed at that.  _ “I didn’t know your mother was so far into quantum teleportation. I think I would have heard about it on the news or something.” _

Brooke laughed, letting the phone go to voicemail in the process.  _ “Never underestimate my mother’s stubbornness. Or how persistently annoying she can be.”  _

Almost as if it was on cue; Victoria’s face appeared on her phone again, buzzing in her hand. They both laughed. 

_ “I’d answer that.” _ Carter suggested.  _ “Just so it can be someone else who discovers the formula to teleportation. Not your mother.”  _ He added. 

Brooke chuckled, nodding her head. 

_ “I’ll see you around, Davis.” _

She smiled.  _ “See you around, Baizen.” _

Brooke watched him grin at her before he turned his back, heading down the sidewalk and leaving her standing in front of the building.

On the sixth ring, Brooke finally answered. 

Victoria chewed her ear off for not answering her calls or texts until her phone beeped, a call from France coming in from the other line. Victoria hung up the moment Brooke said it was France calling, not even bothering to say goodbye. 

The call went well, and Brooke ended up securing a new fabric supplier. 

The finest silk was being shipped to Brooke within a week. 

Brooke groaned when the phone on her desk beeped. Her assistant, Millicent, then spoke through the speaker. “Um, Ms. Davis. Uh, Ms. Waldorf is here to see you.” 

She couldn’t help but chuckle, she could tell from the sound of Millie’s voice that she was clearly intimidated by Blair. Maybe even scared. She used the same voice whenever Victoria called. 

Brooke pressed down on the intercom button to reply. “Send her in.” 

It had only been a day after the wedding – she hadn’t expected to see Blair so soon after. Or ever. 

Brooke looked up when she heard heels clicking against the floor of her office. Blair was holding two cups of coffee as she walked up to Brookes desk, setting it down right in front of her. Brooke raised her brow in confusion, and a tad bit of amusement. 

“Mocha double latte, extra foam.” Blair told Brooke, motioning to the coffee. 

She took the cup of coffee, bringing it to her lips. 

“I’m surprised you didn’t ask me if it was poisoned this time.” Blair said, almost under her breath but loud enough for Brooke to hear her. 

Brooke ignored it. Instead, she motioned for Blair that it was okay to sit down. Which she did, her legs crossing once she was seated. Brooke watched as Blair took a sip at her own coffee. 

_ Why the hell was she here? _

“-So, how’d you end up finding out my coffee order? Serena tell you?” Brooke decided to break the silence that filled the room. 

“Please, I haven’t spoken to Serena since she and Nate left last night after the wedding. She and Nate were probably up all night having blissful amazing post-wedding sex.” She rolled her eyes, sounding almost bitter. “And from her Instagram post from this morning, she and Nate are on a private jet headed to some tropical island.” 

“-To continue on with their blissful amazing post-wedding sex?” She said a teasing tone, though her face remained serious, almost uninterested in what she was even saying. Brooke knew she needed to be careful when it came to Blair Waldorf. 

“Yes, but now it’s blissful amazing honeymoon sex.” Blair groaned

Brooke couldn’t help but let out a little snort of a laugh at that. 

Blair cleared her throat, shifting in her seat. “My assistant called your assistant to find out your order. She was very insistent about extra foam.” She admitted how she knew Brookes coffee order. 

“As she should be,” Brooke set the coffee cup down on her desk. “I don’t pay her the money I do to get my coffee order wrong.” She pressed her elbows onto her desk, folding her hands together and looked at Blair. “What can I do for you, Waldorf?” 

Blair unfolded her legs, sitting forward a bit. “I know that we aren’t exactly friends.” 

Brooke nodded. “I agree.” 

“I saw you dancing with Carter Baizen last night.” The woman in front of Brooke said after a moment of quiet. “I also saw you leave with him.” 

The brunette couldn’t help but pinch her lips together as she tilted her head to the side a little, she fought hard to conceal her amusement at Blairs observation – or why the hell she was even bringing it up. Was this why she stopped by? 

“I did.” Brooke decided to say. She  _ did  _ dance with him. And technically she did leave with him – but they ended up leaving separately. But she was sure Blair suspected otherwise. 

“Woman to woman,” Blair started to say, but stopped, pressing her lips together and breathing out hard through her nose. “I’ve known Baizen for a while. He was a few grades ahead of me, but he was very… _ known.  _ He still is.” 

Brooke simply nodded her head, sucking in and biting down on her lower lip to try and not laugh. 

“I’m aware that he’s… _ known, _ ” Brooke used Blairs word to describe Carter. “I do work with a lot of models.” She unfolded her hands and set them down on the desk now. “I also know you and him slept together – so if you’re here because you think I’m stepping on your toes,” 

Blairs face pinched. “Disgusting. No. I slept with Carter when I was having a literal mental breakdown – I don’t want him. Ever again.” 

“So…why are you here?” Brooke asked.  _ Did Serena say something to her? Was she upset that Brooke had danced with Carter?  _ “Is it because he dated Serena?” 

“No.” 

“So…?” Brooke drew out the word. 

“Like I said before; we’re not friends. But you are Serena’s friend. As am I. So, I thought I’d warn you before he charms his way into your heart, since he seemed to have no problem getting you into bed with him,”

Brooke felt her blood boil with anger at what Blair had just said.  _ Who the hell does she think she is? _

“–Carter Baizen isn’t the type of guy you want to get involved with. He somehow managed to get Serena to fall for him and then bailed. He’s only ever looked out for his own interests. That’ll never change.” 

Brooke didn’t say anything, too furious to reply. She simply rolled her eyes at what Blair was saying.

The woman huffed in annoyance, standing up from where she sat. “You don’t believe me, fine. But I would suggest doing some digging on him before it goes any further between the two of you.” 

Blair turned and walked away from Brookes desk.

“For the record,” Brooke made her voice strong. “Woman to woman,” she used Blairs own words again, her tone sharp causing Blair to stop at the door, turning slowly to face Brooke. “I didn’t sleep with him. I went home alone.”

Blair didn’t speak. 

“But if I did…it wouldn’t be  _ any  _ of your business. Because like you pointed out earlier. We’re not friends.”

Blair stood there, almost stunned by Brookes words.

“You can go now.” 

The young woman turned on her heel and left Brooke alone in her office.

 

 

* * *

 

**Fury**

It’s the only thing Brooke felt since Blair left her office earlier that day. 

In what world did Blair Waldorf think she had the right to tell Brooke who she should and shouldn’t associate herself with? Just when she started to feel empathy for the woman – she goes and tries to make it her business who Brooke chooses to spend time with. 

_ Woman to woman,  _

Bullshit. 

Brooke sat on her couch, legs sprawled over the cushions in a very un-lady like fashion. If Victoria saw her she’d probably have a field day. She tried to push her anger away, or even turn it into some sort of inspiration as she sketched. But she’d just end up scribbling all over the design, drawing large x’s over the eyes and violently stabbing the paper with her pencil, not at all imagining it was Blair Waldorf,  _ no _ , that would be uncivilized. 

She looked over at the clock on her phone after tossing the sketchpad across the couch so she wouldn’t have the deal with it any longer. 

 

**11:42 pm**

  
  


Brooke hadn’t gotten out of the office until late, swamped with calls from her Australian based Davis Enterprises from a designer who was currently working on the men’s line with Brooke – the two of them arguing like cats and dogs over the designs she sent him. 

_ Alexander Coyne.  _

Her mother had hired him to help Brooke with the men’s line, and he seemed to think he was actually running it. Alexander had a big storm coming for him if he thought he was going to be the lead designer. 

Apparently, Alexander was flying to New York in a few days to discuss with her in person why the designs weren’t ‘ _ working’  _ for him. 

Screw Alexander.

And screw Blair. 

Brooke huffed, unlocking her phone to check her e-mail. 

She should go to bed; she had an early morning tomorrow. But she was too wired to go to sleep now. Her mind buzzing from her anger of both Alexander Coyne and Blair Waldorf. 

She needed to take her mind off of them, the stress was creeping up her spine, all the way to her neck which currently had the biggest kink in it. Brooke groaned, moving her head side to side to try and ease the tension. 

Brooke had a thought, her eyebrow kinking when it came to her mind. There had always been a perfect resolution to relieving stress for her. 

_ Sex.  _

And she did have Carters number saved her in her phone from the night before.

Brooke pursed her lips at the thought before opening her contacts and scrolling until she found his name. 

She opened the icon to send him a message. 

But she couldn’t fucking type anything with Blairs words nagging in her head. She blew out a long breath in frustration as she closed the message window, setting her phone down and grabbing her laptop off of the coffee table next to the couch. 

_ Why are you doing this? Why are you letting Blair fucking Waldorf get inside your head? It’s not like you want to marry the guy – it’d just be sex. You NEED sex. Just shut the laptop and pick up your goddamn phone and give him a call. A booty-call. Nothing more. Pick. Up. The. Phone.  _

She didn’t, instead, she used the website her mother had set up an account for her to use when she met someone new. Her mother was paranoid that everyone around Brooke was simply using her – her background checks were always thorough. So, when Brooke told her she was moving to New York – Victoria set up an account for Brooke to use on the website she constantly used whenever it came to someone new coming in to her daughter’s life. 

Brooke typed in Carters name.

She shouldn’t have. 

_ Beth Buckley,  _ Carters former fiancée, the woman he left at the altar. 

Apparently, her family had more money than God, winning big with owning their own oil rig. They also tried to make a name in politics.  __

Carter had left Beth Buckley at the altar on their wedding day. After, of course, her family had paid off his gambling debts. Which was a  _ very  _ big ton of debt. He had used this poor girl and then left her when he got what he needed. 

_ “He’s only ever looked out for his own interest.” _

Blairs words rang in her head. 

Brooke let out a bitter laugh, shaking her head. She was an easy target – maybe Carter had more debt that needed to be paid off. 

Since leaving Beth, Carter had been attached to some pretty high-profile women, the relationships never lasting more than a week. Minus Serena of course. Brooke wondered how he had used Serena – what had he gotten out of her before he bailed?

She licked at her lower lip as she closed her laptop, not needing to read anymore. 

Brooke picked up her phone instead, opening up her messages and sending a text to Serena. 

Not asking about Carter though. She asked for something else. 

When Serena messaged her back, she clicked on the little bubble and put the phone to her ear.

It rang four times before someone answered. 

_ “Hello?”  _

“-Apparently rich people from the South are easy targets for Baizen.” Brooke said, pushing her elbow up against the back of the couch as the phone was still against her cheek. It was obvious that it was  _ her  _ calling – Blair was quick enough to know that, no matter how late it was at night. “But I never really liked that North Carolina was considered part of the South.” 

She heard a little chuckle from the end of the other line. 

_ “Well, technically it’s one of the South Atlantic States– so you at least have that to fall on if you’re really against being from a southern state.”  _

“It’s not the state I’m against, it’s the stigma that comes with being from the south. People that aren’t from the south act like we all have nightly banjo duels, cousin swaps, or that we all take baths together down in the  _ swimmin’ hole _ .” She used a southern accent for the last part.

Blair gave in to an actual laugh at that.

“-Not the mention the whole confederate pride the South has.” 

_ “That is pretty disgusting.”  _

Brooke agreed. 

Silence. 

“So, what’d he get from Serena before he left her?” Brooke asked, curious.

_ “She and Nate got Carter out of the debt he owed the Buckley’s. Serena didn’t want him to have to work on an oil rig for twenty years trying to pay back the money he owed. He gave her some ridiculous story about how he wanted to prove to her that he changed and he was going to Texas anyway to work for the Buckley’s. That he’d rather have her hate him, than pity him. She bruised his male ego by paying off his debt. So, he left – not to Texas like he said he would though. He showed up a few months later to try and weasel his way into Serena’s life again while she was dating Nate. Serena almost fell for it again – but she realized who he really was in the end.”  _

Brooke huffed, not in anger, in disappointment. 

Silence again.

“Sorry I was a bitch to you this morning.” Brooke finally spoke, apologizing for her behavior. 

_ “Well, it’s not like I didn’t release a video of you flashing your boobs so…I can take you being a bitch from time to time. It’s not like I don’t deserve it.”  _

“You were trying to warn me. It was nice. Even if we’re not friends.” She said in a teasing tone. 

Blair replied with a quiet chuckle. 

“Since my only two friends in Manhattan are currently on their honeymoon for the next month and a half, and the guy I had planned on sleeping with turned out to be a money using slime ball who leaves women at the altar,” She said in a one long breath. “I don’t really have anyone to talk to…or go out to eat with…shop with.” 

_ “Well, it just so happens that my only two friends are gone for a month and a half as well _ .” Blair played off Brookes words.  _ “I wouldn’t oppose to opening my schedule to talk, go to lunch, or shop. Only because we’re both in the predicament of not having any friends in the city for a while.”  _

“Because we definitely aren’t friends.” Brooke smiled as she spoke. 

_ “It’s purely out of pity that I’d be hanging out with you.”  _

“Of course.” Brooke chuckled. 

_ “I’m free for lunch tomorrow. 1pm?”  _

“I’ll meet you at your office. Goodnight, Waldorf.”

_ “Goodnight, Davis.”  _

  
  


* * *

 

 

One lunch date turned into a months’ worth of lunch dates and shopping outings. Who would have ever guessed that Brooke Davis would actually consider Blair Waldorf her friend.  _ Of course, never out loud.  _

She was currently reading “Inside” by Dan Humphrey, while Blair was reading “An Unkindness of Ravens” 

Apparently, both of their ex-boyfriends were authors; and they happened to be one of the stars of their biggest hit. 

Brooke had smiled while reading a part where Dylan described Clair; whom she could only assume was Blair. 

_ “When Clair demanded attention, everyone respected her request. She was small yet giant. Young yet adult. Girlish yet macho.”  _

Dan Humphrey, ex-husband to Serena van der Woodsen, had clearly admired Blair Waldorf, even loved her. It seemed that Blair was the star of Dans book, not Serena. 

Brooke however, was just a few chapters in an epic love story. 

A footnote. 

Blair could also get away with denying that the book was written about her, though. Lucas didn’t bother coming up with clever/or not so clever fake names for his friends. 

_ She was fiercely independent. Brooke Davis. Brilliant, and beautiful, and brave. In two years, she had grown more than anyone I had ever known. Brooke Davis is going to change the world someday. And I’m not sure she even knows it.  _

She had never seen herself the way Lucas saw her, the way he wrote her. Maybe when he first wrote about her; the party girl who snuck into the back seat of his car and got naked.  _ Yeah,  _ she recognized that girl. But brave? No. She never saw herself as brave. 

Brooke Davis took a lot of chances in her life. But she was terrified for each and every single step. She had never been brave about it. But Lucas seemed to think she was. 

The brunette sighed, rubbing her temples. Her hair was neatly pinned back into a bun, which seemed to be causing tension in her head. 

But that wasn’t the only thing that was causing her tension.

Alexander had been in town for almost three weeks now – driving Brooke up the wall with his comments on the men’s line, his  _ suggestions  _ that he’d tell her team without consulting with her first. He was driving her crazy. And Brooke was glad that Blair was stopping by soon for yet another lunch outing. 

The tabloids were referring to the two fashion designers as;  _ Frenemies.  _

Blair was actually very humorous, always ready for a witty comeback or some absurd reference to use. She was also a fan of creating nicknames for people Anytime her ex-husband was mentioned during their lunches; Blair would refer to him as,  _ “That Bass-hole.”  _ Or  _ “Mother-Chucker.” _

And here Brooke thought that all her nicknames for Haley were clever.  

The door to her office was closed; so, when the knocking began, Brooke grew irritated. She told Millie that she did  _ not  _ want to be bothered today unless it was an absolute emergency. No calls. And that while her door was shut; she was not to be disturbed.

Brooke knew that it wasn’t Blair – from the short time she’s spent with Blair. Brooke knows that Blair is never early, or late. Not even fashionably late. Blair Waldorf was always precisely on-time.

“-This better be a damn good emergency, Millicent!” Brooke shouted from her desk, letting her assistant know she could enter.

The door slowly opened, and her assistant peeked her head through the door. “Um, Ms. Davis.”

Brooke rubbed between her brows. “Millie, I told you to call me Brooke.”

“-Brooke,” Millie said next. “I know you said you do not want to be disturbed but uh…you have a guest.” Brooke watched as the young woman looked behind her and then back to Brooke. “He uh, says you were supposed to call him and you never did.”

Brooke tried to rack her brain with who she might have forgotten to call. It wasn’t a distributor, was it? One of the board members?

“Send him in.” Brooke motioned for Millie to open the door.

Millie did.

Carter Baizen stood next to her.

Brooke bit down on her tongue, trying to keep her anger at bay. She figured Carter would have taken the hint by now. She had never called him – even the densest person could put together that she was no longer interested. She looked back down at her sketch pad. She heard the door shut, knowing Millie had left. “What can I do for you, Baizen?” She tried to remain professional. It wouldn’t exactly be the greatest thing PR wise to have all her employees within earshot hear her screaming at Carter.

“So formal.” Carter chuckled. She still didn’t look up, but she could hear his footsteps coming closer. Soon, his hands were resting on her desk as he leaned against it, looking down at her.

Brooke looked up, raising her brow at him.

“I hadn’t heard from you yet, figured I’d stop by and-”

“-Cash in on that raincheck?” Brooke glared, her voice sounding almost bitter.

Carter looked down at her, his facial expression confused. She was being pretty hostile. He composed himself. “I was actually stopping by to make sure I gave you the right phone number.”

“Oh, of course. Because you not hearing from me  _ must  _ be because you gave me the wrong number.” She let out a harsh laugh. ”Get over yourself.” She glared.

His face twisted in confusion again. “Last time I saw you, we were having a pretty good time. Did something change between that time and now?”

Brooke puckered her lip, nodding, clearly not amused by any of this. 

Carter smirked, licking his bottom lip. “And you hanging out with Blair Waldorf lately – that’d have nothing to do with it, would it?” Brooke rolled her eyes and looked back down at her sketch pad again. “What’d she tell you?”

Brooke looked up again, eyes cold. “She didn’t tell me anything.” Brooke lied. “Do you really think I’m naïve enough to not check up on someone new I meet. I did my research too, Baizen.” She spat out. “And unlike Beth Buckley, I’m not some little rich southern girl who is easily taken advantage of. If you need your debt paid off – I’d suggest finding someone else to do it for you.”

She watched as he rubbed at his jaw that tensed.

“If you did your research; you’d learn that I have my entire family’s fortune now. Dead parents – left it all to me. Apart from the few million my sister got in the will. It all belongs to me. I don’t need anyone to pay my debt. Perhaps you’d like bank records as proof?” He replied in a catty tone. “Also,” he reached into the inside of his suit jacket and pulled something out; tossing it to Brooke. Her hands fumbling before catching it.

She looked down at the bronze medallion.

She read the writing on it.

  
  
  
  


_ Grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, _

_ courage to change the things I can,  _

_ and wisdom to know the difference. _

  
  
  
  


Brooke turned the medallion over; etched on the other side it read; 

  
  
  
  


**_Gamblers Anonymous._ **

**_One day at a time._ **

 

 

  
  
“Four years sober.” Carter spoke up, Brookes eye shot up to his. “haven’t even so much as played a hand of gold-fish in those four years.”

Brooke tongue flicked out and swiped over her lower lip, her eyes fell down again. She was embarrassed. That didn’t happen much.

“I’m sure you’ve heard the saying about making assumptions.” His voice was cold.

And Brooke didn’t blame him.

“I’m not after your money, Brooke.” He took the medallion from her and put it back in the inside of his jacket. He looked down at her when her eyes found his again. “And now I’m not even after you either.”

Brooke closed her eyes, mouth slightly open as she locked her jaw. God, she really was an ass. When she opened her eyes again, Carter was gone. She shook her head.

“Idiot.” She said under her breath. “You are  _ such  _ an idiot.” 

  
  
  
  


* * *

 

  
  


“You are in a  _ mood  _ today!” Haley said over skype, her face taking up most of Brooke’s laptop screen. It was a Saturday afternoon, and Brooke had plans tonight with Blair. She had to go to some club opening. Brooke stopped club hopping around her first year in LA. It just wasn’t the scene she wanted to be a part of. Though, it had been an easy in into the fashion world since most of the models in LA were found in the back rooms of those clubs. 

Brooke simply groaned, her head falling back on the headboard of her bed. 

She hadn’t even been paying attention to what Haley was saying, simply grumbling out responses. 

Brooke was really in no mood to go to this club opening with Blair. 

But after Blair told her the real reason she wanted Brooke to come with her; she agreed.

Before the divorce, Blair and Chuck had signed onto this club together – her name was still on it. And in the divorce papers Blair signed, she was obligated to attend important events at each business the two of them shared. 

So when Brooke had told her no at first, that’s when Blair finally opened up to her.  _ “I just…I can’t go alone. I can’t be in the same room with him alone. Please. I need you.”  _

And now she had no choice but to go to this thing. 

“I can’t believe you ended up being friends with the woman who leaked a video of you flashing your boobs to the entire internet.” Haley chuckled. Brooke had already told her why she was in a sour mood, warning her the moment she answered the skype call.

“-I ended up being friends with Rachel.” Brooke reminded Haley. “And she did that first.”

“Very true.” Haley continued to chuckle. Brooke watched as her best friend frowned after a moment. “Is there any other reason you’re in such a mood?” 

“I don’t know.” Brooke shrugged. “Being alone and horny in New York City seems like a big enough mood damper.” 

She could see Haley biting down on her lip to keep from laughing. 

Brooke rolled her eyes and gave into a lazy smile. “Shut up.” She chuckled. 

_ “What happened to that guy from the wedding?”  _

Brookes mouth hung open and she stared at the screen, a glare forming as she looked at Haley’s guilty face.  

“-Nathan, how long have you been in the room?” 

_ “Long enough to know you’re alone and horny.”  _ He said, still off the camera. 

“Haley!” 

“-He just walked in!” 

_ “Come on’, Brooke. Like I’ve never heard you complain about being on a dry spell before. I have. In detail.” _

“-Yeah! While I was drunk!” Brooke tried to argue. She let out a loud groan when both and Haley and Nathan began to laugh.

“-I’m sorry,” Haley sobered up. “I should have told you he came into the room. But he does raise a good question. What happened to the wedding guy?” 

“-What happens to every guy that comes into my life – I was an idiot and blew it.”

“What? How?”

Brooke shrugged her shoulders. “I got paranoid. Accused him of trying woo me to get to my money.” 

It had been about a week since she went full-bitch-mode on Carter Baizen. 

_ “’Woo’ you? Were you born in the 50’s, Brooke?”  _ Nathan mocked. 

“I didn’t use the word ‘woo’ to him.” Brooke glared at the screen, though she knew Nathan probably couldn’t see her. 

“-Why did you think he was after your money?” Haley said in a serious voice, obviously worried. 

“It was nothing. Just something Blair said about his past.’

“-Oh, and because Blair, the woman who leaked your flashing video, and more than likely started the rumor that you use actual animal fur, is a really reliable source.” Haley scoffed.

Brooke sighed, running her fingers through her hair. “She’s not  _ that  _ bad. I mean, yeah, she was a mega-bitch at first. But she’s actually a decent person. Insecure, lonely, a bit neurotic. But she’s got a good heart.”

_ “Maybe you should sleep with her?”  _ Nathan suggested.

“Nathan!” Haley scolded.

“Oh, you  _ would  _ want me to sleep with her – wouldn’t you? You freaking perv!” Brooke teased. “Yeah, I know  _ all  _ about the porn Haley found back when you guys were dating.”

_ “I hate that you guys ended up being roommates.” _

Brooke and Haley both laughed.

“Look,” Haley said once they stopped laughing. “Just because you blew it with the wedding guy – doesn’t mean that there aren’t plenty of fish in the sea for you to jump into bed with.” Haley reminded Brooke. “Plus, you are going to a club tonight. A perfect opportunity to take a guy home to scratch that itch and then send him on his merry way, never having to see him again.”

Brooke felt her mouth open wide. “Tutor-girl! When did you become risqué-girl!” She teased. Brooke then kinked her brow up. “Have  _ you  _ been watching Nathans porn?”

“I’m hanging up now! Hopefully the next time I talk to you, you’ll have had sex and will be more pleasant to talk to.”

Brooke grinned at Haley and shook her head. “I’ll talk to you later. Give Jamie a kiss for me when he gets home!”

“I will. Love you, Brooke.”

“Love you too, Hales.”

Brooke and Haley both hung up, Brooke only catching half of Nathan yelling at her for not saying goodbye to him. She laughed, closing her laptop.

She really did miss her best friends.

But once basketball season picked up, she’d be able to see them when they flew out to New York.

Seattle Sonics vs. The New York Knicks

Nathan had been pissed when Brooke told him that the current owner of the New York Knicks gave her courtside tickets for the entire season. He had jokingly called her a traitor and Brooke had laughed, telling him that if it helped; she’d take the tickets and then sell them – sending Jamie the money to put in his college fund instead. He agreed to that.

Brooke looked down at her phone when it dinged.

  
  
  


**Blair Waldorf (2:23PM):**

_ I have heard from reliable sources that my Basshole of an ex-husband is bringing a date tonight _

  
  


 

Brooke shook her head, trying not to laugh.  _ Reliable sources? _

  
  
  


**Brooke Davis (2:24PM):**

_ Okay?  _

 

 

**Blair Waldorf (2:24PM):**

_ Okay????? _

_ Obviously, that means I need a date! _

 

 

**Brooke Davis (2:24PM):**

_ Good. Bring a date. _

_ That way I can stay home. _

 

 

**Blair Waldorf (2:24PM):**

_ No, you’re still going.  _

_ And you’re bringing me a date _

  
  
  


Brooke scoffed at that. She was joking, right? 

But from the time Brooke spent with Blair, she unfortunately knew that she wasn’t joking.

  
  
  


 

**Brooke Davis (2:26PM):**

_ How in the hell did this end up with me being a third wheel? _

_ Not to mention that I’m supposed to find you a date? _

_ You do realize that you’re the only person I talk to in the city right now? _

  
  


 

**Blair Waldorf (2:27PM):**

_ You must have a decent looking male co-worker. _

 

 

**Brooke Davis (2:27PM):**

_ Do you not? _

_ We work with models, Blair. _

_ I’m sure you can call one up. _

_ Or maybe an intern? _

  
  


 

**Blair Waldorf (2:28PM):**

_ All of my models are gay _

_ And my interns are afraid of me.  _

  
  


Brooke bit down on her lower lip to stop herself from laughing at that. She knew that Blair’s interns all feared her, and she also knew that most of the male models who were willing to work with her were friends with her father model boyfriend. Brooke did have a larger amount of straight, or at least bi male models working with her since she moved to New York. But she didn’t hang out with them outside of work. They were all so…superficial? No, that wasn’t even a good word to describe them. Egotistical. That was better. Brooke was not going to set Blair up with one of the male models she worked with. 

An intern? 

_ No,  _ no that wouldn’t work. Blair was too much of a HBIC. By the first twenty minutes of the date, she’d have him off doing errands for her. 

Blair needed someone who would at least challenge her a little. And was good-looking enough to flaunt around in front of Bass. 

_ Ugh.  _

She knew who to call.

 

 

**Blair Waldorf (2:34PM):**

_ Hello???? _

_ I will show up to your place if you don’t answer. _

_ I can’t show up to this thing without a date. _

_ Or you. _

 

 

**Brooke Davis (2:35PM):**

_ Relax _

_ We’ll meet at your place as planned _

_ Dress to impress _

 

 

Brooke didn’t bother checking to see what snarky remark Blair sent her, instead, she closed her eyes and had to mentally prepare herself for what she was about to do.

She put her phone to her ear. Listened as it rang.

_ “Hello?” _

 

* * *

 

 

 

The three of them sat at a table in the club, no one bothered to speak. 

Brooke took a big swig from her drink, swallowing hard. She really didn’t want to be here. 

“-So,” 

Both Blair and Brooke looked over at the man sitting with them. 

“I never thought Brooke would be friends with a rival designer. Let alone, someone as talented as you.” He smirked. 

Brooke glared at Alexanders attempt at flattery. 

Blair simply gave Alexander a polite smile. 

It wasn’t until about ten minutes later that Brooke jumped at the sound of Blair laughing loudly. She didn’t understand what the hell was happening, and neither did Alexander from the looks of it. 

Blair placed her hand on his chest while continuing to laugh. “-I never knew Australians were so charming!” She said sweetly.

Someone cleared their throat. Brooke looked away from Blair and Alexander and saw who was standing in front of their table. 

The best man.

Chuck Bass.

Blair Waldorf's ex-husband. 

“Blair,” He said her name in a smug tone. “I haven’t heard you fake a laugh that forceful since you were dating Marcus.”

“Maybe this is my real laugh, Chuck. And you’ve been on the receiving end of my fake laughs all these years, you just didn’t realize it. But you’ve never been aware when someone is… _ faking  _ something for you.” 

Brooke had to cover her mouth to hide the smile that had her lips twitching upward. Brooke looked up at Chuck to see him glaring at Blair, he then moved his attention to her. 

“Brooke Davis.” He said her name. 

Her facial expression was that of;  _ your point?  _

“I’m surprised to see you here. With Blair of all people. Seeing as she was the one to release your little video.” He smirked. 

Brooke didn’t say anything, simply looking at Chuck dead in the eyes. 

He almost looked uncomfortable with her silence. 

She finally spoke, “Were you waiting for a reaction? Maybe hope I’d stand up and throw my drink in Blairs face?” She quirked her brow up at him. He looked to Blair and then back to Brooke. “Yeah, I already knew Blair was the one to post the video. So, if you were hoping for some big revelation out of this – I’m sorry to disappoint.” She took a quick sip of her drink before swallowing and setting it down on the table.  “Actually, I’m not. How small and petty are you, Bass?” Brooke asked. “You two are divorced, from what I’ve heard – by your own indiscretions – so why are you going out of your way to make Blair out to be a bad person?”

His brows raised.

“I know who she is. I know what she’s done. And yet, I’m still her friend and she’s mine. So why don’t you go crawl back into the legs of one of the skanks who came with you tonight. I’m sure they charge by the hour – don’t want to rack up your bill too high.”

Alexander let out a loud laugh at that.  

Chuck glared at Brooke before turning his attention back to his ex-wife. “I see you’ve befriended someone who is just as big of a bitch as you.”

Brooke looked over to Blair to see her smirking. “I choose my friends wisely.” She replied.

Chuck scoffed and walked away from their table.

They both started laughing once he was gone, Brooke smiled softly at Blair, to which she returned the smile. It was the first time any of them said out loud to the other that they were each other’s friends.

Brooke shook her head, chuckling at little.

_ Blair Waldorf and Brooke Davis are friends. _

_ What the fuck. _

They were there for another hour when Alexander convinced Blair to join him on the lower floor where everyone was dancing.

_ “-I am not drunk enough to dance.”  _ Blair said as Alexander pulled at her hand as he led her down the stairs. And of course, somehow Blair had grabbed ahold of Brookes hand and would not let go, dragging her along as well.

God, she really hated being the third fucking wheel.

It took awhile for Blair to loosen up, it wasn’t until Brooke huffed and started dancing with Alexander as well, that Blair felt comfortable enough to dance too.

They were both young, yes. But they had the careers that most people didn’t reach until they were in their forties. Blair may be a year older than Brooke, but there were times where they both felt a lot older than they actually were.

A twenty-five-year-old and twenty-six-year-old who would rather sit at home or be at work compared to a night-club. Brooke had to laugh, thinking about going out the way she did when she was in Tree Hill as a teen. Back then she’d wake up and barely have a hangover. Now, if Brooke had more than two glasses of wine; she was dead to the world. 

She knew that was how she’d wake up tomorrow.

“Oh god!” Blair groaned, pulling Brooke closer to her. “Baizen is here.”

Brooke instantly stopped dancing after the words left Blairs mouth.

It had been a week since she had made an ass out of herself with him.

She tried to act casual and not whip her head around to look for him – but no matter how subtle she could be, it wouldn’t have mattered. Because by the time her eyes found Carters, he was already staring at her. Which meant that he had been staring at her the entire time.

Carter wasn’t alone either.

A woman was sitting in his lap, her mouth going at his neck as he smirked at Brooke.

The brunette narrowed her eyes at the grey-blue-eyed man in a glare. When the woman moved her mouth to his, he kissed her back – but he kept his eyes open, staring right at Brooke.

She felt her entire body fill with rage.

“We should head back up,” Alexander said, probably seeing the fury in Brookes eyes as she kept her stare glued on Carter.

“Yeah,” Blair agreed. “You look like you could use another cocktail”

Brooke shook her head and turned her body to face Blair. “I’m good here.” She said, looking around to find the nearest hot guy to dance with. “You two go up. Have some drinks for me.”

Brooke left Alexander and Blair and walked over to a man a few feet away who caught her eye. He was tall, blonde, brown eyes from what Brooke could tell in the glowing red and purple lights flashing around them. The man smirked when Brooke walked up to him, grabbing him by the middle of his shirt and leading him to her before she began to dance with him.

She had always been good at getting what she wanted, men, money, materialistic things – but right now, she wanted to drive Carter into a jealous fit. Brooke knew the exact amount of sway her hips made to drive a man wild, the man she was dancing with seemed to enjoy it, his hands running along Brookes toned stomach after he turned her around so her back was to his.

Brooke looked up and met Carters eyes, she could feel them on her the entire time – a burning glare creating holes all over her skin. She smirked, her hands moving to the man’s, helping him glide his hands all over her body.

  
  
  


**_Keep playing my heartstrings faster and faster_ **

**_You can be just what I want, my true disaster_ **

  
  
  


She laughed when the man’s lips brushed against her ear as he whispered something to her, she didn’t know what the hell he said – but that didn’t matter. She let her head fall back against his shoulder and wrapped his arms around her body to pull him closer to her. Her eyes closed as she continued to dance – it wasn’t until she heard Alexander saying her name that she finally opened her eyes. 

He was holding her phone up; Victoria’s face was flashing on the screen.

“It’s the sixth time she’s called.” Alexander said.

She groaned, pushing up off of the man she was dancing with.

“Oh, come on! We’ve just gotten started!” The man complained. “Let the girl dance!”

Brooke rolled her eyes, using one hand to grab her phone from Alexander, and the other to push against the man’s chest, telling him to go away. 

“Fuckin’ tease.” She heard the man mutter before sulking away. 

Brooke walked away, not bothering to glance in the direction where Carter was sitting. By the time she finally found a semi-quiet enough area, Victoria had already hung up. It only took about two seconds for her face to flash on Brookes cellphone screen again. 

“Yes?” 

_ “Yes? Really? That’s how you’re going to answer on the seventh time I’ve called you in the last five minutes?”  _ Victoria huffed. 

Brooke put her hand to her free ear to try and block out the music playing. “Yes, that’s how I’m going to answer. Because if you didn’t take the hint by me not answering the first six calls – I’m busy.”

_ “Oh yeah – so busy.”  _ Victoria’s voice dripped with sarcasm. 

“What do you need, Victoria?” 

_ “I want to know why I opened my phone to a bunch of e-mails from gossip sites with pictures of you, Alexander, and Blair Waldorf,”  _ Victoria stressed Blairs name. _ “-going into a club together? A club I assume you’re still at, given the horrible sound I hear in the background.”  _

“What’s the big deal?” 

Victoria scoffed.  _ “I don’t know, Brooke. Maybe because she’s our rival designer.” _

“ _ My _ rival designer,” Brooke corrected her mother. “And that doesn’t matter to me. She’s my friend.” The music was getting to be too much for her, that combined with her mother’s shrew like voice, Brooke walked down until she found a closed off area. 

To her luck, the door was unlocked. 

She stepped inside the room, closing the door behind her and listened to her mother rant on about Blair.

_ “You can be so naïve sometimes, Brooke. She’s not your friend. She’s using you. And the fact that you dragged Alexander into this – he’s OUR designer Brooke. Blair Waldorf will try and snatch him up, do not doubt that!”  _

Brooke had to roll her eyes at that. “You are paranoid, you know that, right?” 

_ “In this business – you should be too.”  _

“Okay. I’m hanging up now.”

_ “Brooke, I’m serious. You need to be careful around her!”  _

“Oh, how sweet, Victoria. I never knew you cared about my well-being.” Brooke mocked her mother. 

_ “I care about the well-being of our company. Don’t flatter yourself.”  _

Brooke pulled the phone away from her ear and tapped down angrily with her finger against the screen multiple times before it finally hung up, giving into a shriek of annoyance. Brooke always tried to have thick skin when it came to her mother – but no matter how hard she tried, her mother’s words still cut her deep.

“Let me guess,” Brooke spun around when she heard someone speak from across the room. Carter was leaning against the door. “You were just on the phone with another man you assumed was after your money?” He smirked.

Brooke glared, her eyebrow popping up. “Why are you here, Carter? Don’t you have some skank waiting to latch onto your neck again?”

Carter pursed his lips, amused by her words. “Just curious why you left in such a rush from the little show you put on for me out there.” He stepped forward. 

Normally, Brooke would tell someone to fuck off if they said something like that to her. But the way his voice drawled and lowered an octave made her stomach clench. And he was right, she was putting on a show for him. 

At first it had been about wanting to make him jealous, but when she watched him watch her, it became more of Brooke wanting Carter to want her. So, she had made sure each sway of her hips was more provocative than the one before.

Carter was standing a bit away from her now, but close enough for Brookes heart rate to speed up. But she kept on her game face. “So curious that you left your date and followed me all the way into this room?”

He nodded, moving even closer to her. He was standing right in front of her now, looking down at her as his tongue swiped across his lower lip. Brooke could smell the cologne on his skin. She recognized the scent – it was from the new Versace line. 

Brooke looked to his lips before his hungry eyes took her in. 

It was enough to make Brooke grab at his shirt and pull him down to her. His lips crushed against hers and Brookes fingers ran up his neck until they were threading through his hair. When his hands gripped onto her hips, giving them a squeeze, Brookes mouth opened in a moan, which gave Carter the opportunity to greedily lick into her mouth which only elicited another moan from Brooke.

His hand moved down her body, and Brooke gasped when he began to push up the skirt of her dress.

She hadn’t dressed up too much for the night. A simple blue dress that stopped mid-thigh. It had a bit of a deep cut, but nothing too drastic, just enough to show off the girls. It was airy and light, easy to dance in – it’s what made her pick the dress in the first place.  

Brooke was so grateful she picked black lace panties to wear under it, and not spanks like she had originally planned on. Brooke hadn’t even realized they were walking backwards until her back hit the wall while Carters hand still held the skirt of her dress up, exposing the black lace underneath. When Brookes hands fell from Carter's hair and down to his pants, fingers fiddling with the zipper of the dark blue jeans he wore, Carters hand dropped from her thigh and grabbed at Brookes hands, bringing them back up so they were situated between their chests.

Pulling her lips away from his in a pout, Brooke looked up at Carter in confusion. “I thought you were cashing in your raincheck?” She breathed out, her hand sliding up his chest now until it was moving up to his neck, resting on the crook of it. 

Carter smirked down at Brooke. “I think I’m only going to deposit half of the check tonight.” His voice went low before his mouth pressed against Brookes again in a needy kiss. Their lips meshing together. The sensation of Carters tongue moving against hers was enough to drive Brooke mad with desire, hands now gripping at his hair and tugging hard. He chuckled and then sucked at her lower lip before his hand moved up to her face the second Brooke began to grind her hips into his for the friction she desperately craved.

When Carter pressed his index and middle finger to Brookes lips, her lower half flooded with heat.  _ Deposit half of the check.  _ Brooke licked at the two fingers, wetting them before she sucked the length of them. She watched as Carter closed his eyes and groaned at the motion. He bit down on his lip when Brooke hooked her leg up against his hip a bit, giving him a better advantage.

Carters eyes opened lazily and looked down at Brooke before he moved his hand down, moving her dress up to sit against her hips and pulled her underwear aside. One hand rested on the underside of her leg, helping it stay in place, while his fingers she had wetted teased her, to which Brooke responded to by arching her back, her head fell back slightly, bumping into the wall.  Carter took the opportunity to press kisses down her jaw and then down to her neck as his fingers continued to tease her slit.

Brooke let out a whine each time his fingers were close to pushing through, only to have him pull them away a little. He chuckled into her neck. “Don’t be a fucking tease!” She growled, yanking him by the hair and pulled his face up to hers. His lips were formed in a cocky grin when his thumb pressed roughly against her clit, sending a wave of pleasure through Brooke, making her slicker than she already was. Brookes head fell against the wall again, her mouth opening as she took in a sharp breath. Her wetting Carters fingers seemed more of a way to get him off than her now, though – it did do things to her to see his lust blown eyes shut close and hear the low groan leave his lips from the action. It seemed that turning him on turned Brooke on as well. That didn’t happen much when she was having sex with someone.

_ “Carter,”  _ She panted his name when his thumb continued to rub circles against her clit.  _ “Please,”  _ She begged, her hand moving to his wrist to try and guide his fingers into her. But he didn’t push his fingers into her just yet.

His mouth moved to her ear, whispering. “-Just trying to get you slick enough, beautiful.” He purred.

She moved his hand so one of his fingers was pushing through, she heard him groan, breath hot against her ear. “Trust me,” Her voice was husky. “I am.”

Both of his fingers pushed into her in a rough and sharp motion and Brooke gasped out, hands gripping onto his shoulders as she angled herself better to move her hips as he moved his two fingers in and out of her, his fingers curling inside her as his thumb continued to play with her clit. Her walls clenched around his fingers and Carters hips jutted against hers as he started up his rhythm again. Brooke wasn’t the least bit embarrassed of the moans, pants, and filthy curses that left her lips as she rode his hand, his fingers deep inside her.

Carters mouth covered hers when she felt the heat building up, knowing she wouldn’t last much longer. With another curling motioning of his finger inside her, and this thumb rubbing down hard on her clit, Brooke came, clenching around his fingers, and breathing hard into his open mouth. Both of their mouths were hung open, though their lips still stuck together a bit. It wasn’t until his fingers left her and he helped set her down a bit, that she felt a wetness against her from his jeans as her leg slid off his hip. It seemed that Carter too, could get off, just by making someone else get off too.

Their breathing was shaky, foreheads pressed together. Carter held onto her until she felt like she could stand properly on her own. He even went as far as to help pull the skirt of her dress down for her.

Brooke didn’t say much, only bent down a bit to pick up her phone that she must have dropped during everything. When she stood back up, Carter was messing with his pants, wiping them a bit to make the stain less noticeable.

She didn’t really know what to say, so instead, she walked away from him and to the door.

“Brooke,” Carter called out her name once she had her hand wrapped around the door handle. She looked over her shoulder at him. He was facing her now, a little smile playing on his lips.

Brooke bit down on her lower lip, her face flushed slightly. “See you around, Baizen.” She said to him before leaving the room.

_ Holy fucking shit. _

Brooke Davis just had an orgasm so intense that it made it to her top-five-list.

However, the other four mind-blowing orgasms she had on that list – she had had during sex. This was the first time she ever got off like that to someone simply fingering her.

_ Holy. Fucking. Shit. _

  
  
  
  


 

 

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you guys enjoyed the chapter! Kudos/comments/feedback are always appreciated!


	3. True Colors

 

* * *

 

 

 

It had been a week since she had gone to the nightclub with Blair. And exactly one week since her little rendezvous with Carter in one of the back rooms of the club that the former Mr. and Mrs. Bass owned together.

And Brooke had been in a better mood than she had ever had in _years_.

That was until Lucas Scott called her up.

_“You designed Serena van der Woodsen's wedding dress, right?”_

_“Yeah,”_ She didn’t exactly know where he was going with this _._

 _“I knew that name was familiar to me!”_ He said in an excited tone.

_“Wow, Luke. I never knew you were so into the New York Elite.”_

_“No, no.”_ Lucas said, _“I’m not into her – I’m a fan of her husbands.”_

_“Nate Archibald?”_

_“No, sorry, her ex-husband. Dan Humphrey. His books – they are some of the best books I’ve ever read. I flew to New York once during my first year of college to go to one of his book signings, but it got canceled last minute. I was crushed.”_

Brooke couldn’t help but let out a low chuckle at that. _“Wow, Luke. Does Peyton know how big of a crush you have on Dan?”_

 _“Shut up.”_ He laughed. _“Have you met him?”_

 _“Have I met the ex-husband of my friend, who’s wedding dress I designed for her wedding to another man, who happens to be my friend as well? No, I can’t say I have, Luke.”_ She teased him.

_“Man! I was hoping you knew him. I’d kill to just…sit down and pick his brain.”_

_“You really like his writing that much?”_ Brooke asked Lucas. _“When we were dating you only ever read classics. I’m kinda surprised that you’d be into his writing. It’s not exactly Steinbeck.”_

 _“No, it’s not. And can I say that I’m proud that you’ve finally stopped referring to him as Steinberg?”_ He chuckled.

_“I only did that to be cute. And then to annoy you. Which was a lot more fun.”_

Lucas laughed at that. He then proceeded to tell her why he enjoyed Dan Humphrey’s writing so much, and Brooke knew what she had to do.

And she really didn’t want to.

This had to be breaking some sort of friendship rule. Not just to Serena, who was finally back in town, but Nate as well. Brooke had a few minutes to mull over how exactly she’d go about asking Serena for Dan’s address.

Lucas freaking Scott better appreciate what she was about to do for him.

Brooke took in a breath of reassurance when she saw Serena walking into the restaurant, a wide grin on her face when she spotted her friend. Brooke got up and hugged Serena when she hurried over upon seeing her. “God! I’ve missed you!” Serena said with that childish laugh that seemed to fill the room with sunshine.

Brooke let go of Serena and laughed. “Oh, yeah. I’m sure you missed me _so_ much while you were laying on the beaches of whatever island you guys went to. And I’m sure you missed me even more while you were having amazing sex with your hot husband.” Brooke smirked as she sat down at the table.

Serena blushed, covering her face with her hands. “It was pretty amazing!” The blonde said once her hands left her face.

Brooke nodded as she watched Serena sit down. “I can tell. You’re positively glowing, Mrs. Archibald.”

Serena giggled again. “You know, after a month and a half of people calling me Mrs. Archibald, I’m still not used to it.” She smiled. “But I’m not gonna lie. It feels really good to be called it.”

“So…no hyphen?” Brooke said in mock shock.

“No hyphen.” Serena said proudly. “I am now Serena Celia Archibald.”

“Well, well. That’s big.” Brooke smirked. “I don’t think I could give up my last name. I might even make whoever marries me change their last name to Davis.”

Serena laughed, “I really wouldn’t put that past you.” She agreed.

The two women ordered their drinks, Brooke refusing any sort of alcoholic drink, opting for ice tea instead. Yes, she did feel amazing after the little club night, but that was from Carter. She definitely did not feel amazing the next morning when she spent about half of the day in the bathroom getting sick. Brooke was going to take a long break from drinking.

Serena ordered an ice tea as well, saying she didn’t want to drink if Brooke wasn’t either. She almost looked relieved when Brooke said she wasn’t going to be drinking. That had made Brooke raise her brow, but she didn’t press the subject.

“Honduras was _so_ breathtaking, I can’t believe I had never been there before. White sand beaches, the water was _so_ blue. I even convinced Nate to go with me to free dive with sharks.”

“-You are insane!” Brooke laughed, sipping her drink. “I would not go anywhere near those sea-beasts! I freak out anytime I’m waist deep in the ocean. There’s no way in hell I’d willingly go swimming with sharks!”

“Oh! Come on! Be adventurous!” Serena teased her, sipping from her own ice tea as well.

“I am very adventurous! Just not in the swimming with shark’s way – more along the lines of flashing my boobs on a high school time capsule video.” Brooke said causing Serena to choke laugh. “I’ve shoplifted before too. Got arrested for it and everything.”

“Scandalous!” Serena beamed at Brooke, smiling fondly at the young brunette. “I really did miss you, Brooke.” She confessed again. “I know we haven’t know each other very long but…you’ve become one of my best friends.”

Brooke frowned at her words, setting down her drink and sitting up more in her chair. “You might not think that after I ask you what I’m about to ask…”

Serena raised her brows at Brooke in confusion.

“Look, I know this is totally weird and probably crossing the line and if it is, feel free to dump your drink on my head, I won’t get mad,”

“-Brooke,” Serena interrupted her rambling.

“I’m sorry. I talk a lot when I’m nervous. Or, in general.”

Serena smiled at that.

Brooke took in another deep breath. “How weird would it be if I asked you for your ex-husbands address?”

Serena looked down at the table, fidgeting with the cloth covering it. “A little weird, I guess.” The blonde looked back up at Brooke. “-depending on why you want his address?”

“My ex.”

Serena gave her a confused look.

“Lucas.” Brooke named him.

“Your ex-boyfriend who married your best friend; Lucas?”

“Yeah,” Brooke cleared her throat. “He’s an author.” She could see that Serena was finally beginning to get where she was going. “He wrote this amazing book…but hasn’t been able to write anything since. And he’s a big fan of Dan and asked me if I knew him…I know it’s weird and probably breaking some sort of friendship code with not only you, but Nate as well,”

Brooke stopped talking when Serena pulled her phone out of her purse and began to type on it. The brunette looked down at the table when her phone let out a ding, alerting her that she had a new message.

“Dan’s address.” Serena set down her phone. “I don’t know if he has the same number, but I do know he still lives in his father’s old loft in Brooklyn.” 

Brooke frowned as she looked to Serena. “This is weird.”

Serena laughed, shaking her head. “I remember what it was like when Dan was in one of his ‘writers-block’ phases. It was unbearable being around him, really.” Serena joked. “I’m doing this more for your best friend, actually. From a former writer’s wife to a current writer’s wife.”

Brooke sighed in relief. “Thank you, Serena. I know Lucas has been really down lately with having no luck writing a new book – I’m glad you understand.” She smiled. “Besides, now Lucas will owe me big time and I’m hoping that means I’ll convince him to leave London and bring my best friend back to the States.”

Serena grinned at that. “As long as you don’t end up moving back to LA, I’m fine with that!” Brooke laughed at that.

They ordered their meals and ate, Serena devouring the plate in front of her within five minutes, impressing Brooke. But it was all very familiar. No drinking, a bigger appetite than usual. Plus, Serena’s boobs were looking huge.

“So…” Brooke drew out the word as she moved her food around on her plate with her fork. “When did you find out?”

“-Find out what?” Serena replied, wiping her mouth.

Brooke simply raised a knowing eyebrow and smirked. “You really want me to say it out loud in a crowded restaurant?”

Serena huffed, setting down her napkin. “How do you even know? Did Nate call you?”

Brooke laughed. “No, he didn’t call me.”

“Well, then is it obvious or something? I mean, have I gained weight?”

Brooke shook her head and smiled. “No, you haven’t. well, maybe in your boobies.” She motioned to Serena’s chest and the blonde blushed, covering up a bit. “Senior year. My best friend Haley was,” she stopped herself. “-in your situation.” Brooke worded it carefully, not wanting to let it slip out with nosey restaurant goers who would sell the story to any gossip site that would pay them enough. “So, I’m familiar with the signs.”

“I found out two weeks ago.” Serena whispered. “While we were in Honduras. Apparently…the night of the wedding.”

“Wow,” Brooke laughed. “Way to go, Nate!”

“We haven’t told anyone yet, so…mums the word.”

“-Blair doesn’t know?” Brooke said in surprise.

“No – and you cannot let her know that you knew before her!” Serena stressed.

Brooke chuckled, nodding her head. “I won’t say anything. But you should probably tell her before your boobs get any bigger and people start accusing you of getting a boob job on your honeymoon.”

Serena laughed, and the two enjoyed the rest of their lunch date.

 

 

* * *

 

 

**Brooklyn, New York**

 

It wasn’t as bad as Blair made it out to be when she would talk about it. She spoke of it like it was a flea infested place. But Brooke quite enjoyed the look of Brooklyn. She hadn’t told Blair that she was going to, ambush, for a lack of a better word, Dan at his loft, in hopes that he might give Lucas a call.

That’s why she was so surprised when she saw Blair leave the building that Dan lived in.

She was wearing a scarf around her head, almost like a cloak. She also wore a big pair of sunglasses, concealing her eyes. But it was very obvious that the person leaving the building was Blair Waldorf. Why was she here? In Brooklyn, a place she claimed to despise – leaving Dan’s building?

Brooke waited until Blair had gotten into a black town car, watching it pull away and drive down the busy streets, that’s when she got out of the cab she took and walked across the street to Dan’s building.

Once she was standing in front of Dan’s door, she debated how she was going to make this work. It was really weird to just show up at the door of the ex-husband of your friend. Brooke shook those thoughts away and knocked on the door.

She heard laughter followed by footsteps.

 _“If you came back just to argue about the Bronte sisters,”_ The door to Dan’s loft opened and he stood there in surprise at who was standing on the other side of the door. Clearly, he was expecting someone else. More than likely; Blair. “Brooke Davis.” He said in shock. “Uh, I uh, wow. I thought you were,”

“Someone else?” She raised her brow.

The man in front of Brooke did not resemble the authors picture from “Inside” He had the same curly brown hair, but a dark beard now covered his face. It wasn’t Grizzly Adams beard status, but it was definitely not the clean-shaven Dan Humphrey on the inside sleeve of the book she had finished reading earlier this month. 

Dan scratched at his beard. “Yeah,” He mumbled.

They stood there for a moment before Brooke finally spoke. “Wait – how did you know who I am?”

Dan gave her an obvious look.

“Oh,” Brooke rolled her eyes, and then motioned to her boobs. “The video.”

“-What? No, no, not from that.” Dan stammered. “No, I didn’t see that…video.” He tried to assure her. “I recognized you from the article.” Dan scratched at his beard again. “When it came out that you were designing Serena’s wedding dress.”

Brooke looked down at the ground, “Yeah,” she said softly. “Sorry.” There was no reason to apologize to Dan, she didn’t even know him.

He simply shrugged when she looked back up at him. “Sometimes people just aren’t meant to end up together. No one’s fault.”

“Yeah,” Brooke locked her jaw. “I know what you mean.”

“Lucas Scott.” Dan said, surprising Brooke.

“What?”

“ _She was fiercely independent. Brooke Davis. Brilliant, and beautiful, and brave.”_ Dan recited Lucas’ words. “I read the book.” He said next.

“You’ve read Lucas’ book?” She said in surprise. Lucas would lose his mind when he found out that Dan Humphrey read his book

“Yeah,” He nodded. “I always wondered why he never wrote anything else. He’s a great writer.”

Brooke grinned wide at him in amusement. “You have _no_ idea how crazy Lucas would go if he heard you say that.” She chuckled.

“You and him? You’re still in touch.”

Brooke nodded. “Yeah, he’s one of my best friends.” She told him. “Not to mention that he married my best friend.”

“He and Peyton ended up together?”

Brooke laughed, shaking her head. “I’m sorry – it’s such a trip to hear someone who doesn’t know them talk about them.”

Dan laughed.

“Yes, they ended up together. I mean, come on. She was his epic love in the story – I was just the…footnote.” Brooke shrugged.

He stared at her for a long moment, “That doesn’t bother you?” Dan asked.

Brooke quirked her brow up. “That two people I love ended up together?” She said back, “No, not really. I mean, at first it was hard – but their happiness meant more to me than being petty and icing them out for the rest of my life. It was tempting but…they meant too much to me.” Brooke said softly. She then became very aware that she was still standing in the hallway. “This is a pretty deep conversation to be having standing in the hall.”

Dan laughed, “Yeah.” He agreed.

“I actually came here to talk to you about Lucas.” Dan raised a brow at that. “He’s such a big fan of your books – he was wondering if I knew you.” He smiled at that. “He hasn’t been able to write anything since his first book was released.” Brooke watched as Dan nodded his head, understanding the struggle Lucas was going through. It made her feel a little less guilty about what she was about to ask. “And I was wondering if maybe you might find it in the kindness of your heart to reach out to him?” She made a sad pouty face in hopes that Dan would agree.

He laughed and nodded his head. “Does he know you’re doing this?”

“No. I want it to be a surprise.” Brooke then reached into the bag she brought with her, pulling out her iPad. “It’s not too late in London, is it?”

Dan smiled and then motioned for her to come inside.

Lucas Scott was going to lose his freaking mind.

 

  

* * *

 

 

 

Dan and Lucas hit it off immediately. Brooke was glad for that. Mostly because Dan had given Lucas his own number so they could talk later – Brooke didn’t know how much longer she could sit on Dan Humphrey’s couch listening to him and Lucas rambling on about their different inspirations and their hatred of most of the YA books that were circulating recently.

So, when Dan looked over at Brooke and saw the bored expression on her face he had laughed and told Lucas to call him so that Brooke could leave before they put her in a coma.

Dan was a pretty decent guy.

She could understand why Serena and Blair both fell for him.

Brooke sat at her desk and thought about how she had seen Blair leave Dan’s building the day she had gone to see him. It could have been harmless, just two old friends meeting. But the whole cloak and dagger thing was a bit dramatic.

Then again, it was Blair Waldorf.

If she did anything less than dramatic, Brooke would be concerned.

Brooke really didn’t care that Blair was still in contact with Dan, Serena might, but Brooke didn’t. Blair deserved happiness in her life, and if Dan could give that to her – friendship wise or more, she was glad. Blair and Chuck were in the middle of another big custodial battle again.

After seeing Blair at the nightclub with Alexander, Chuck had gone to his lawyers and had them write up papers saying that Blair was unfit to raise their son.

Blair had gotten the papers the day after Serena and Nate came back to New York.

That was the first time Brooke had ever seen Blair cry.

Brooke had wanted to throttle Chuck Bass.

When Nate had called Brooke, telling her to come to his place immediately, Brooke had panicked, thinking that something went wrong with Serena’s pregnancy – but when she showed up, Blair was sitting on their couch, Serena had her one arm wrapped around Blair's shoulder, and her hand was dabbing her cheeks with a tissue.

Brooke hadn’t really understood why Nate had called her and told her to come – but it didn’t matter. The moment that Blair had broken down upon seeing Brooke, she was quick to go to her friend's side, the rival designer fell apart in her arms, telling her all about what Chuck had done.

When Blair had finally calmed down, and Brooke and Nate left the room to go make her some tea in the kitchen, Brooke had asked Nate why he had called her.

 _“I was just as surprised.”_ Nate said, setting the kettle down on the stove. _“But she said she needed you and to get you here immediately. Since when did you two become friends?”_

Brooke told him that while he and Serena were on their honeymoon, she and Blair went from being acquaintances, to going on lunch dates and shopping buddies, to full blown friends. But Brooke never thought that she would be the one Blair would want while upset and in need of comforting.

 _That_ had surprised her.

Brooke knew from stories from Blair that her relationship with Dan was probably the healthiest relationship she had ever had. That he had been her best friend before they ended up together.

Blair never told Brooke why they broke up – or how he and Serena ended up together and married (divorced not long after), but it wasn’t Brookes business to pry.

Blair of course knew how her relationship with Lucas ended and how he and Peyton had ended up together in the end, but that’s because she had read the book. (minus the part where Peyton and Lucas broke up when they were nineteen, only to get back together a few years later – but that was a long story.)

 _“Ms. Davis – er, I mean; Brooke.”_ Millie’s voice came through the intercom.

Brooke sat up a bit and pressed down on the intercom button so she could reply. “Yes, Millie?”

Silence.

Brooke quirked her brow up, wondering what the hell was happening. Just when she was about to get up and go see what was wrong, Millie’s voice came through the intercom again.

_“Your mom is here.”_

_“Dear God, do not call me that. My name is Victoria.”_

Brooke rolled her eyes when she heard her mother’s voice in the background.

“Send her in.”

Brooke sat back in her chair again, sighing in frustration that her mother was in town. She hadn’t spoken to Victoria since the night at the club when she had called 

The door to Brookes office swung open, only to be slammed shut once Victoria was inside.

Brooke looked to her mother with a bored expression. “Can I help you?”

Victoria walked over to Brookes desk and then thrust a large manila envelope at her daughter. Brooke rolled her eyes before she took the envelope and pulled out the papers inside. Her eyes scanned over them, not quite understanding what she was reading.

“These are Alexanders resignation papers. He’s no longer our designer Clothes 4 Bro’s.”

“What?” Brooke looked up from the papers and to her mother.

“He says he’s not given the creativity he needs to do this line. And unless you release your grip – he will no longer be working with us.”

“-He can’t do that! He’s under contract with us!” Brooke said in anger. “And I give him creativity! It’s not my fault that his creations are shit!”

“Somehow, his lawyers found a loophole in our contract. Alexander says we either meet his demands, or he goes to work at a different line.”

Brooke scoffed, tossing the papers on her desk. “Then he can go find another line!” She snapped at her mother. “He was _less_ than unknown before I brought him on – who the hell is going to hire him?” Brooke huffed out in anger.

Victoria simply smirked.

Brooke glared. “What?”

Victoria pointed down to the papers, telling her to go to the last page.

It was an offer from another line for Alexander to work at.

_Waldorf Designs._

* * *

 

 

 

Brooke had been furious.

She had been wrong about Blair, and her mother had been right. How could Blair have done that? She totally screwed Brooke over! Their entire “friendship” had been fake, a way for Blair to weasel her way in to try and fuck Brooke over.

Blair had called her four times already. Each time Brooke sent her to voicemail. She even left her on ‘read’ whenever Blair would text after getting sent to voicemail.

Around 9pm and the umpteenth text from Blair, Brooke had left the office early, partially because she knew that at some point Blair would end up showing up and she was not ready for a showdown at her place of work – but mostly because she needed to drown her sorrows.

Most work days Brooke didn’t make it home until 11pm, staying in the office until there was not a single person left. It was always peaceful to her, she’d walk around, go through the back rooms where they kept the finished pieces of some of her designs, and run her fingers along the fabric. She had missed being able to make the clothes herself – Brooke had helped with Serena’s wedding dress, mostly because she was a control freak and wanted it to be done perfectly. But other than that dress, Brooke was mostly here for the designs. And of course, to be the _pretty face_ of the company. That’s what her mother had said to her at least.

She and Victoria had fought, the woman yelling at her daughter that she should have never let Blair Waldorf into her life – that it was the stupidest move she has ever made since getting into this business.

 _“You have zero business sense, Brooke! You’re a talented designer, yes, but you don’t spin the straw to gold, I do! Truth be told, you’re not smart enough to do it!”_ Victoria had yelled at Brooke. _“And now I have to clean up the mess you’ve made!”_

Now, Brooke was at a bar a few blocks from her apartment building, on her third drink, bitching to the bartender about what a back-stabbing-bitch Blair turned out to be. The woman would chuckle while Brooke threw out various insults, and pour her more drinks. It probably wasn’t the smartest idea to get drunk by herself – but Brooke really needed to just not feel anything.

She knew she could have always called Peyton or Haley, but they had all warned her about getting into a friendship with Blair Waldorf, reminding her that she was the one to leak the now infamous video. She _defended_ Blair – to numerous people. Nathan, Haley, Lucas, Peyton, her mother. God! She even defended Blair to Chuck Bass.

Idiot.

She was a total idiot.

“-You know what I think?” 

Brooke looked down the bar to see a man in a suit leaning against the counter, watching her with a smirk. She could already tell this guy was a sleaze-bag.

“I think you are _way_ too pretty to be this angry.” He winked before motioning the bartender over to him. “Get her another drink on my tab.” The man then looked back to Brooke. “I think I have the perfect way to get you out of your troubles, sweetheart.”

Brooke narrowed her eyes at him, not amused by his pick-up attempt. But she took the drink when the female bartender handed it over to her.

“You are in need of some sexual healing.” He smirked. “And I’m willing to volunteer.”

“Oh…God.” Brooke made a face and shook her head. “Did you really just say that?” She looked to the bartender. “-Did he seriously just say that?”

The woman nodded, cleaning a clear cup and made a face of disgust, mirroring Brookes own disgusted expression. 

“Please…leave my sight. Okay? Go away.” Brooke took a swig of the drink he bought for her. “And don’t _ever_ try to pick up a woman using a Marvin Gaye song – it’s pathetic. Even more pathetic than that hideous suit you’re wearing!” She motioned to the tan suit he was wearing.

The man glared at Brooke, fixing his suit jacket a bit. “Cunt.” He said before walking away.

Brooke rolled her eyes again and swirled her drink around in the cup. The bartender chuckled.

When he was out of eye and ear-shot, Brooke slumped against the bar, resting her head on the counter. “He’s right. I do need sex.” She pouted.

“Well, you’ve got the pick of the bar.” The woman moved her hand out dramatically, showing Brooke all the men in the room. The brunette picked her head up a bit and looked around the bar.

“Ew. Too…hipster-y.” Brooke complained as she scanned the area. “Or…too near death.” She saw a group of older men in suits in the back corner, probably men who worked on wall street and refused to retire. _No thanks._ Just because Brooke had daddy issues, didn’t mean she was going to hop into bed with a man twice her age that would probably have a heart attack while on top of her.

Brooke bit down on her lip when it finally dawned on her.

_Carter Baizen._

She still had his info on her phone. And he _sure_ did know how to work his fingers. Brooke chuckled as she unlocked her phone and opened a text message to send to Carter.

 

 

**Brooke Davis (10:20 PM):**

_Wanna cash in the rest of that raincheck?_

Brooke didn’t wait for a response, simply shared her location with him and put her cellphone back in her purse, finishing up the drink the sleazy man had bought her.

“-This is still going on his tab, right?” Brooke asked.

The woman laughed, nodding her head. “Yeah. In fact, I think the rest of your drinks will be charged to his tab.”

Brooke grinned. “You are my new best friend.”

She didn’t really know how much time had passed before she saw Carter take a seat next to her at the bar.

“Well, well,” She smirked. “Hey there, handsome.”

Carter reached for her empty glass, holding it up. “I see you started without me.”

Brooke snorted. “I started _long_ before I even texted you.” She turned her attention back to the bartender. It was a new one – she didn’t know when they switched shifts. But it wasn’t the woman she had been talking to most of the night. “Excuse me, I’d like another.”

The man ignored her, instead stood a few feet away and flirted with a woman who was leaning against the bar to show off her cleavage.

Brooke scoffed. “Can’t a girl get some service?” She huffed under her breath.

She felt Carters hand rest on her leg. “You okay?” He asked her.

Brooke cocked her head to the side to look at him. She smirked, moving forward and grabbing at him by the collar of his shirt. “I will be.” She whispered before pressing her lips to his. Carter kissed her back, but pulled away far too soon for Brookes liking. She whined, pouting out her lower lip at him.

“You wanna talk?” He asked her.

Brooke looked at him in confusion. “No, I want you to kiss me.” She moved to kiss him again, but he pulled back. “Seriously?!” She huffed. 

“Give me your phone.” He told her, his hand moving off her leg, instead he held it out, palm up and waiting for Brooke to do as told.

“No, you’re not the boss of me.” She turned in her chair, it spun a little and she had to grip onto the bar to keep from falling off – Carter kept a hold on her too.

“How much have you had to drink, Davis?” Carter asked.

“None of your business, mom.” Brooke shot back in a snotty tone.

“Hey,” Carter called the bartender over. “How much have you given her?”

“-Don’t answer that!” Brooke pointed at the bartender.

The bartender looked between Brooke and Carter, but it wasn’t until Carter slid a few twenties across the counter that the man answered. “My shift only started about fifteen minutes ago – she was here before I started. But since I started she’s had about three drinks.”

“-What are you? A narc?” Brooke glared.

“-Don’t serve her anymore.” Carter told the bartender.

“ _Why_?” Brooke drew out the word in a whine. “I’m thirsty.”

She saw the look Carter gave her, a soft amused smile. “You are wasted.”

“I am _not_!” Brooke tried to argue. “I’ve only had like three or seven drinks.”

He laughed at that.

Brooke watched him with a wicked grin, her hand slowly moving to his leg, sliding from the knee onward. “You know,” she leaned forward and began to whisper. “You are _very_ sexy right now.” That caused him to smirk. “I mean, you’re sexy in general,” her voice got lower. “But insanely sexy in this moment.” Brookes hand drifted up his leg further. She bit down on her lower lip innocently as her eyes met his. “I keep thinking about that night and how you got off without me even touching you.” Brooke moved in her seat, her face very close to his, their lips nearly touching. “I think I’d like to see what would happen if I touched you.” Her lips grazed over his in the lightest touch. “I want to touch you, Carter.”

Brooke watched as Carter shut his eyes, jaw clenched as he grabbed at her hand that was resting on the inside of his thigh, just below where she wanted to be touching.  “You’re drunk.” He finally managed to get words out

Brooke let out a sarcastic laugh. “Yeah, and I’m sure I’m not the first girl you’ve ever fucked that was drunk.” She replied, things were getting even more dizzy now, images in front of her were blurrier. _Shit,_ she was drunk.

“You’re right.” Carter had gripped at her wrist, wrapping his hand around it. Brooke felt him lean forward, his mouth against her ear. “But when I fuck you for the first time. You’re gonna be sober. So that you’ll be able to remember every single moment of it for the rest of your life.”

 

 

* * *

 

  

Brooke wanted to keep her eyes closed, stay in bed forever, but with the damn pounding inside her head and her bladders desperate need for her to pee, she knew she’d have to open her eyes.

When she opened her eyes, she saw she was in her bedroom. _How the hell did I even get home last night?_ Brooke sat up slowly, not making any fast movement in the fear of causing any more pain to her head than necessary.

She was still in the dress she had worn to work, her heels were off, and her hair was down, resting a few inches below her shoulders in a wavy mess.

Brooke could hear something coming from her left – she looked over in confusion. The shower in her bathroom was on.

 _Oh God,_ did she turn on her shower last night and never get in? Brooke rest her head in her hands in annoyance. It’d be her luck that she drunkenly left the water running all night. But then the water turned off. Brookes head turned sharply in the direction of her bathroom.

“Ow,” She groaned, holding onto her head.

The door to her bathroom was open, and Brooke could hear the shower door slamming closed. A part of her wanted to scream at whoever the hell was in there that if they broke that shower door, their asses would be paying for it.

But who in the fuck was in her bathroom in the first place?

Carter walked out of the bathroom, a towel wrapped around his hips – if Brooke hadn’t been so confused as to why the hell he was here – she’d have taken a moment to admire his body.

“Why are you in my apartment?” Brooke rasped out. “ _How_ are you in my apartment?”

Carter chuckled, running his left hand through his wet hair.

That’s when Brooke took the time to let her eyes wander.

Good fucking Lord.

Her eyes shot back up quickly to his face to see him smirking. She glared.

“You like what you see?”

Brooke scoffed at him. “No, I’m just wondering why you’re in my apartment half naked and fresh out of _my_ shower.”

“Well, your last part kind of answers why I’m half naked, don’t you think?” Carter chuckled, his hand moving out from his hair.

“Why are you here?” Brooke stressed each word.

Carter walked back into the bathroom, not bothering to close the door. Brooke would have followed him in anger, but if she moved anytime soon – she’d end up falling right on her face. So, she simply waited for him. Carter came back into her room a few moments later with a pair of dark jeans on, he was starting to button up a long-sleeved dress shirt.

“You texted me last night telling me that you wanted me to cash in the rest of my raincheck.”

Brookes eyes widened in horror – God! If she could slap her drunk self from last night, she would. Freaking hard.

“By the time I got to the bar you were at, you were clearly wasted. So, I took you home so you could sleep it off.”

“What a gentleman.” Brooke said sarcastically. “How did you even know where I lived?”

“I took your phone, called your assistant – she gave me your address.”

Brooke scoffed at that. “Well, I’m glad Millie has no problem giving out my home address to complete strangers – _so_ glad I hired her.”

Carter laughed, his shirt now buttoned up. Brooke hid a frown at that, Carter had a nice chest, not completely hairless, but not Borat chest-hair. Just the right amount that you could run your fingers through in the heat of the moment – Brooke shook those thoughts away.

Which only caused her to groan from the movement.

She saw a hand being held out in front of her as she hung her head. Carter had two aspirin sitting in his open palm. Brooke looked up at him before she took the two pills out of his hand and plopped them in her mouth, he then held out a glass of water for her to grab.

Brooke quirked her brow up but took the glass of water from him and swallowed a large gulp full of water. Her very dry mouth thanked her for that.  Brooke had seen the glass of water sitting on her bedside table when she first opened her eyes – but what she just drank was still cold. It was definitely not something left over from the night before.

“She wouldn’t give me your address at first. So, I gave you the phone and you told her I wasn’t a rapist or murder and to give me your damn address because you kept giving me one with a Los Angeles area-code...” He licked his lower lip as he smiled in amusement.

“-What?” Brooke glared, knowing he was holding something back.

“Well, I already knew you had a filthy mouth after our little back room adventure in Bass’ club,” He smirked and Brooke felt her cheeks heat, but continued to glare. “But your mousy assistant seemed a little mortified while you were telling her all the things you wanted to do to me. And me you.”

“-Okay, enough.” Brooke stopped him, closing her eyes in embarrassment. “I’m probably going to have to call HR so I don’t end up getting sued for sexual harassment.” Brooke groaned.

“Anyway,” Carter pushed his hands in his pockets. “That’s how I got you home.”

Brooke looked down at her dress next, examining it for any signs that maybe something had happened last night, she didn’t have that sore little nice tingle between her thighs, so she doubted anything big happened.

Carter laughed when he realized what she was doing.

“I told you last night I wasn’t going to fuck you while you were drunk.” Carter said, Brooke hadn’t remembered the conversation. Then again, she hadn’t even remembered texting Carter in the first place. “I was a perfect gentleman. I didn’t even undress you – though, you did try to do that yourself.”

Brooke rolled her eyes at that. “So, what? You decided to stay the night? That’s not weird or creepy at all.”

The smirk that had been playing on Carters mouth slowly fell at her words. His tongue flicked at his lower lip in a fast motion as he looked away from her.

She closed her eyes, running her hands through her hair. “I’m sorry,” Brooke apologized, knowing what she said was rude. “I’m a bitch while I’m hungover.” She admitted. “And on days that end in a Y.” She added. But he still wasn’t looking at her. “Thank you, Carter.” Brooke said softly, he finally made eye contact with her. “For taking care of me last night. You didn’t have to. I appreciate it, really.”

Carter shifted on his feet and shrugged his shoulders. “No problem,” He blew it off. “There’s pizza in your fridge if you get hungry. I’m going to head out.”

Brooke nodded, watching him head towards the bedroom door. “Wait,” She stopped him. Carter turned back to look at her. “When did I order a pizza?”

Carter smiled a bit and looked down at the ground. “I ordered it last night. You kept going on and on about wanting pizza. But when it finally came, you refused to eat it because you said that the only way to eat pizza is when it’s cold. So, I put it in your fridge and told you that you could eat it in the morning. You pouted. Tried to get naked again. And then finally fell asleep." 

Brooke shook her head and chuckled in embarrassment, eyes closed so she wouldn’t have to look at Carter. When she finally did open her eyes, his intense blue eyes were on her. Brooke smiled softly, blushing a bit.

“Next time you want me to cash in the rain check…be sober. Because like I said last night; when I finally fuck you – I want you to remember every moment.”

He left.

_Fuck._

She was going to have to take a cold shower.

But…after she had some cold pizza.

It really was the best way to eat pizza.

 

 

 

* * *

  

 

She hadn’t gone to work in three days, instead, working from home and sending in her sketches. Brooke just needed some time to herself to think things over. To re-evaluate her life a bit. Well, people in her life. She was still incredibly hurt by Blair. At first, she was pissed – beyond pissed. And then it moved into the territory of betrayal. And then she was struck with an overwhelming sadness plaguing her. Brooke hadn’t realized how much Blair turned out to mean to her in the time they spent together.

Brooke sometimes felt so alone, even when she was speaking with Peyton and Haley. Their lives were so different. Nathan and Haley were married with a child, Peyton and Lucas were on a different continent, happily married. Even Nate and Serena were in their post wedding bliss, not to mention that in a few months; they would be parents as well.

She felt very alone.

In Brooke’s short-lived friendship with Blair; they were both equals. She felt connected to Blair in a way that she didn’t even have with Haley and Peyton, who she had been friends with for years. Maybe it was because Blair understood the life Brooke lived, the hectic hours, the sleepless nights, the absolute panic during fashion week. They had discussed these things together, laughing about when they first started out. Brooke told Blair about when she had first created the website for Clothes over Bro’s, more and more orders kept coming in leaving Brooke scrambling to get everything together – how she had recruited all the cheerleaders from the squad, and a few children to help make most of the clothes.

Blair then told her how overwhelmed she felt when she had first started to take over the company from her mother; that she had fainted – the stress of trying to make her mother proud all the while trying to prove to Chuck as well that she could run this business and that he hadn’t made a mistake by paying for her dowry to Louis so Blair could keep Waldorf Designs.

For a long time, Brooke didn’t think anyone would ever beat her on the drama factor of life. Blair Waldorf seemed to have just as much drama in her life as Brooke had.

Still did.

Brooke should have never started up a friendship with Blair; girls like her always needed to be on top. Not matter the cost.

Brooke set down her sketching pen when she heard someone knocking at her door. She had ordered Chinese take-out since she had finally finished off the pizza Carter had bought her, she smiled at the thought of that. Brooke had texted him again after he left and she was in a not so hungover mood, thanking him again for taking care of her.  Brooke had also assured him that he wouldn’t be arrested anytime soon because she talked to Millicent and let the young woman know that she got home safely, and that Carter had been the perfect gentleman.

But Carter had never replied back.

That was enough to cause her smile to fall downward into a frown.

Maybe Carter only ever replied to her when she brought up their raincheck – he had the night she texted him at the bar to come meet her. Now? Nope Not a word. Three days of silence.

Brooke placed her sketch pad down on the coffee table and sat up off the couch, grabbing money out of her purse so she could tip the delivery boy.

Victoria had flown back to California yesterday, stopping by Brookes place before she left to tell her that she had worked everything out with Alexander, that he would not be leaving Clothes 4 Bro’s – which Brooke was not happy about, she didn’t want him working for her company if he was going to be such a damn diva. But Victoria refused to give him up, mostly out of spite for Blair Waldorf trying to snatch him up. So, Victoria convinced Brooke to loosen the grip and let Alexander freely design. Brooke had one request though; either Alexander flies his ass back to Australia and continues sending in his designs; or she’ll have to punch him in his damn face if he step foot near her. He left New York as well.

Alexander sent Brooke an email telling her that he was glad she accepted his terms, and that he promised to make sure not to let her down – that the men’s line would be amazing. Brooke didn’t reply, she just deleted it and created a folder in her e-mails called ‘Asshole” where all of Alexander's e-mails would be directed to.

Brooke opened her front door only to roll her eyes, moving to close it shut. She wasn’t fast enough, a shiny red high-heel stopped the door from shutting.

“What the hell is going on?” Blair asked in anger.

She had to let out a scoff of a laugh at that, her hand on the door to keep it open so she could look Blair in the face. “I don’t know, Blair – why don’t you tell me?”

“I don’t know either! All I know is that you haven’t returned any of my calls or texts in the last four days – not to mention you haven’t been at work either, apparently.”

“Well, you would know all about what goes on in my office now, wouldn’t you?”

“What does that even mean?” Blair huffed out in annoyance.

Brooke rolled her eyes and let go of the door, walking away from Blair and into her apartment, which from the sound of heels stomping after her, Blair had followed.

So, the young brunette grabbed the manila envelope Victoria had given her days prior, and pulled out the letter from Waldorf Designs offering Alexander a position to be a lead designer for the company. Brooke turned and walked to where Blair was standing in the middle of the room, she held out the paper for Blair to grab.

Blair snatched the piece of paper from Brooke, she watched as her eyes scanned over the words, in a play of confusion. Brooke shook her head at that.

Blair looked up at Brooke from the paper. “I didn’t do this, Brooke.” She told her. Brooke narrowed her eyes in disbelief. “I didn’t!”

“Really?” Brooke laughed, taking the paper from Blair and held it up so she could see. She then pointed to the signature at the end of the offer. “Is this not your signature? _Blair Waldorf.”_ She looked at the paper herself and then turned it back so Blair could see it again. “I’ve seen your signature, Waldorf. This isn’t a copy.”

Blair huffed, “Yes, it’s my signature – but I never sent that letter! I wrote it when you first moved to New York so I could try and screw you over – but I never sent it! And I wouldn’t send it now, I wouldn’t do that to you, Brooke!” Blair tried to assure Brooke.

But Brooke didn’t believe her. “ _Right,_ ” She drew out the word. “You wouldn’t do that – the woman who leaked a video of me flashing my boobs, or paid someone to tell Nate that I used real animal fur instead of faux-fur, you know what, Blair – if you need more ammo to try and ruin me, I made a sex-tape in high-school. I mean, it was burnt but I’m sure you will somehow be able to put the embers together so you could humiliate me further.”

Blairs eyes filled with tears, “Brooke,” her voice broke. “I did those things before I got to know you, before you became one of my best friends.” 

Brooke stopped Blair from speaking further. “Well, I’m _not_ anymore.” She glared. “You want to de-thrown me, nice try. So sorry you didn’t manage to steal Alexander away from me, but some people actually know how to remain loyal – not that you’d know anything about that. How is Dan Humphrey, by the way?” Brooke watched the color drain from Blairs face, eyes going wide. Brooke turned away and walked back over to her couch, taking a seat on it and grabbing her sketch pad and pen. “Shut the door on your way out. 

When Brooke heard the door to her apartment shut a few moments later, she finally closed her eyes, letting in a deep breath. _Yeah, that was a low blow._

But so was going after one of Brookes designers when you claim to be her friend. 

 

 

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

 

It seemed that when you take a few personal days off from work; everything goes to shit without you there. By the time Brooke got back, Millicent looked like she dropped about ten pounds from stress alone; while her designers seemed to be running around the office like chickens with their heads cut off. A shipment of fabric from Paris was late, and the designs that were meant to be sent to some D-list CW actress still hadn’t been sent. Brooke had been absolutely furious when she got a call from the red-heads agent saying that since the designs never came; they were going to be looking for a dress elsewhere.

Brooke had worked her ass off while sketching the design, looking at countless pictures of the young woman, making sure her skin tone would fit well with the color, as well as her hair and eye color; she took every single thing in mind while working on the design; the best way to accentuate the woman’s flat chest to give the illusion that she was two cup sizes bigger. Brooke had even skyped with Tutor-girl to make sure she was getting the math right to make sure that the illusion would work while using a program to virtually see the dress. But her idiot interns fucked it all up and never sent out the finished project.

Millie had been giving her strange looks all week since she finally came back, tip-toeing around her boss until Brooke finally snapped and asked her what the hell she was doing.

 _“It’s nothing, I just, you, uh. You’re kinda. I don’t think I should,”_ She stammered. 

 _“Out with it, Millie!”_  

_“You’re just…kinda of acting a bit like…”_

Millie didn’t have to say who Brooke was acting like. She already knew. 

Brooke Davis was turning into the tyrant her mother turned into while working. 

She had sighed, ran her hands down her face and then looked up at Millie. _“Take the rest of the day off.”_

_“-Brooke, no, I’m sorry! Please don’t fire me!”_

That made Brooke smile for the first time all week. _“I’m not firing you, Millie. I’m just telling you to take the rest of the day off. Go out, spend time with your family or friends, whoever is important to you here. Just have fun, okay? You deserve a break. I think you’re here more than I am.”_

Millie reluctantly agreed to leave for the day, and after about two hours; Brooke decided to send her interns and designers home too. It was near enough to the end of the day for them to leave anyway, and Brooke wanted to be alone in the office for a while so she could focus on writing a groveling e-mail to the actress as well as the design attached so the young woman could at least see it before going with someone else.

It was around 9pm when her cell-phone went off, she glanced at the screen, the number not one she recognized, but had a New York area code.

“Brooke Davis,” She answered.

_“Hey, Brooke. It’s Dan.”_

Brooke didn’t say anything, just continued to type the e-mail.

 _“Dan Humphrey.”_ He said after a moment.

Brooke felt her lips twitch up a bit, “Yeah. I know. The only other Dan I know is currently in jail. 

_“Oh yeah, Lucas’ Dad.”_

“Mm-hm.” Brooke mumbled, still typing as the phone was pressed against her ear, while resting a bit on her shoulder to keep it still.

_“Look, I’m calling because-”_

Brooke cut him off, “What’s another word to use for incompetent?”

_“Uh, off the top of my head; inadequate, unqualified, useless, inept.”_

“Off the top of your head?” Brooke quoted him. “Jesus, what are you? A walking thesaurus?” She decided to use the word inept in her e-mail. 

He was quiet for a moment before he finally cleared his throat and began to speak. _“So, I talked to Blair.”_

“I’m sure you did.” Brooke replied sourly.

She heard him sigh, _“I know that Blair can be frustrating.”_ Dan said first. _“But I also know she’s a lot more than what people perceive her to be. And I think you know that too.”_

Brooke blew out air through her nostrils, but didn’t speak, instead, she let him go on.

_“You two have very similar backgrounds, eerily similar. Even now; I couldn’t think of any two people more suited to lean on the other.  I feel like…somehow, you two were always meant to find one another, always meant to be friends.”_

Brooke licked at her lower lip. “Yeah, well that was all shot to Hell the moment she sent that letter.”

_“I get that you’re frustrated. Like I said earlier, Blair can be very frustrating. But I believe her when she says she didn’t send the letter.”_

“Of course you believe her. You’re in love with her.” 

Silence. 

Deep sigh. 

_“Our past is very complicated, even now…it’s complicated. We both hurt one another, did things that we can never change or take back; but I have never been one to not call Blair out on her shit. Believe me when I say; I know when she’s lying. She has a tell, even over the phone. It’s part of why our relationship didn’t work…and various other reasons. But I do believe she’s telling the truth when she says she didn’t send that letter.”_

Brooke closed her eyes, running her fingers along the tips of her hair. She wanted to believe Dan, she wanted to believe that Blair wouldn’t do that to her…but Brooke was so guarded.

 _“There are very, very few things Blair Waldorf values more than her work.”_ Dan said next. _“And you’re on that list. I know that you haven’t know each other long, and that you are two very stubborn women, who have been hurt in the past and are very guarded because of that but…I think that’s what makes you guys such good friends – why it was so easy to fall into the friendship once Blair was able to pull her head out of her ass.”_

Brooke sniffed, not realizing that her eyes had filled with tears. 

 _“Blair would never do anything to jeopardize her friendship with you, Brooke. I know it doesn’t seem that way given what she’s done in the past when you first moved here but,”_ He took a deep breath. _“Don’t give up on her.”_ He said, almost as if he were asking. _“She needs you. And I think you need her too. I don’t believe in religion and destiny or any of that spiritual type of stuff, but I do believe that you two were thrown together for a reason. I know you’re hurting…but she’s hurting too. You are very important to her…not many people are able to chip away at her cold exterior and see the real Blair Waldorf. But you have.”_

They had hung up, Brooke told Dan that she needed to finish with her work, but once they hung up, Brooke logged out of her computer and left the office. 

It was a twenty-minute ride to Blairs pent-house from Davis Enterprises and on the taxi ride there, Brooke mulled over what she was going to say. The more Dan had spoken; the more Brooke realized why she had been so upset by everything that had happened. It wasn’t that Blair went behind her back with the letter; it was the deep-rooted fear that maybe their whole friendship had been a sham. 

Brooke had been hurt in the past. 

When everything happened with Peyton, it had broken her heart. Not just because she had been in love with Lucas; but because she never once thought Peyton would ever hurt her that way. The second time it happened; Brooke started to guard her heart, not just with guys; but with friendships as well. _Yes,_ Peyton was still her best friend; but that didn’t mean that things were the same as they were before the whole Lucas Scott fiasco. And Brooke was happy that Peyton ended up with the love of her life in the end; but Peyton always had a saying;

_“People always leave.”_

But when people left...Brooke was always the one who was there for Peyton.

And then Peyton left.

When Brooke moved to New York, she felt alone, even after meeting Nate and Serena. They were amazing friends to her, always by her side. But Brooke never truly felt at home in the City until she became friends with Blair.

Brooke stood in the elevator that would take her to Blairs penthouse, hoping that she was home. The elevator doors opened and a little boy stood in front of them.

She had never met Henry, mostly because he was with Chuck whenever she and Blair went out together during the day.

“Hi,” Brooke smiled softly. “Is your mom home?”

He nodded, holding out his little hand for Brooke to grab. She was hesitant at first, but reached out and wrapped her hand around his small one. He pulled her through the penthouse until they were in the kitchen. Blair was cooking at the stove, whatever she was cooking was very sweet smelling, the room filled with the scent of vanilla. Her back was facing Brooke and Henry, and it wasn’t until the little boy let go of Brookes hand and ran over to his mother, tugging at her skirt, that Blair finally turned around.

She looked surprised to see Brooke standing in the kitchen, she then looked down at Henry, giving him a very stern look. “Henry Harold Bass – what did I tell you about letting people in our home? You do not know her, you can’t just let people in. And you’re supposed to be in bed, or are you not?”

“I heard the elevator ding, mama. I wanted to see who it was.” Henry said in a small voice.

“You should have come and got me when you heard it ding, sweetheart.” Blair caressed her sons face before she leaned down and placed a kiss on the top of his head. “Go on upstairs, I’ll come up in a bit to tuck you in – for the second time.” She stressed the last words. Brooke had to smile at that.

She remembered Jamie when Haley and Nathan would stay in LA with Brooke, how the little boy would constantly keep coming down stairs; _I’m thirsty. Will you check my closet? I need to go to the bathroom. I just need you to read me one more story. Mama, I just want one more song,_ and then of course again; _I’m thirsty._

When Henry ran off and out of the kitchen, Brooke set her purse down on the kitchen island. Blair stood with her arms crossed over her chest. “You know, when I was little; I’d sneak downstairs all the time.” Brooke sat down on one of the black steel stools by the island. “Except, when I went downstairs; no one was ever there. My parents were never home. There was always the hired help; but they were either getting drunk off my parent’s liquor; or off doing god-knows what in the pool house with their boyfriends.”

Blair still stood there, her arms still folded over her chest. It was a guarded stance, Brooke gave it a lot too.

“And then when I got older; I was rarely ever home. I was with my friend Peyton.” Brooke tapped her fingers on the marble. “She was my first real friend. And…you know what happened,” She said softly, knowing Blair read the book and knew the messy love-triangle that tore her friendship with Peyton apart; twice. “Ever since then…I’ve become really good at guarding my heart; from guys and friendships. I just…never wanted to feel that broken again. It’s really hard for me to let people in, to see the real Brooke Davis. And I tried to be careful when we first started talking, but the more time I spent with you, the more comfortable I was. I didn’t have to worry about…hiding who I really am. Because you and I are a lot alike, and if you ever judged me; you’d basically be judging yourself.” Brooke tried to joke.

But Blair didn’t smile.

“I believe you.” Brooke finally said, finally admitted out loud. “I know you wrote the letter, but I don’t believe that you sent it to Alexander. I was just scared that I had made a mistake and my walls came up and bitchy-Brooke came out rearing her ugly head to try and protect myself from the hurt I was feeling. I thought that our friendship was just a sham to you the entire time, when I finally found a friend that I felt comfortable with.” 

Blair uncrossed her arms, but still stood straight. “You don’t feel comfortable with Serena?” She asked.

Brooke smiled, shaking her head lightly. “I feel comfortable with Serena. But it’s different. Serena is different. She’s sunshine Barbie and it’s nice to be around her because she’s an amazing friend. But there’s things she’d never understand about me that you do. Yeah, we can reminisce about the days where we were both party girls and slept around; but that’s not something I’m really proud of. And I know she isn’t too proud of those days either. You and I are very similar, some might say _eerily_ similar.” Brooke said with a smile, quoting Dan.

Blair smiled at that. “I told him not to bug you.”

“Well, he had some really good points. We’ve both been hurt by our best friends, and it’s hard to open up to someone new. My two best friends; I love them, but I’m still very guarded with them. 

“Even Haley?” Blair asked. “You guys are really close; you’re her son’s god-mother.”

“I am. But some very big events led to that decision.  And even though I’m still guarded with Haley; don’t think for a second I wouldn’t go to Hell for that woman. I’d take down the devil himself if I had to. Or if…he even exists.” Blair chuckled at Brookes words. “What I’m trying to get at is that…I ended up letting my guard down with you. I felt comfortable enough to do that, even with people telling me not to. You didn’t just become my friend or best friend while Serena was away…you became my family, a sister I never had. You became a person I’d go to Hell for, fighting the devil tooth and nail the whole time.”

Blair smiled at that, looking down at the ground.

“I’m sorry I didn’t believe you when you said you didn’t send the letter, I don’t know who sent the letter…but I know it wasn’t you. I was just terrified of getting hurt by another friend. Someone who I… _need_ in my life.”

 _“-Mama!”_ Henry shouted from upstairs. Brooke smiled, shaking her head at the boys yelling.

“You should go to him. Some kids aren’t lucky enough to have a parent that will actually go to them when they cry out for them during the night.”

“Well,” Blair shrugged her shoulders, “I can’t leave my stove running…so if you want to stay and watch it for me until I come back…maybe we can have some wine and try and figure out who sent the letter and then decide how to destroy them.”

Brooke laughed at that, nodding her head. “I will. Except…no wine.” She was trying to stay sober for a while.

And _not_ for Carter and his; _when I finally fuck you – I want you to remember every moment_ , line he used. Though, that did give her a tingly feeling afterwards.

She was not drinking for herself. Mostly because she had a feeling that if she had to deal with another hang-over; she’d die.

 


	4. From Dusk Til' Dawn

* * *

 

 

Victoria had called Brooke the day after she and Blair made up. Her mother didn’t even bother asking how Brooke was doing – instead, she told Brooke she needed to create an Instagram account.

_“I thought Clothes over Bro’s already has one?”_ Brooke said in annoyance.

_“It does. But you don’t. So, you’re going to get on your phone; download the app, and create an account. Or does mommy have to do that for you too?”_ Victoria mocked her daughter.

Brooke had held back a scoff, instead spoke calmly. _“Well, it would be the first motherly thing you’ve ever done in your life. But don’t worry; I can figure it out. I don’t want to ruin your chance at winning dead-beat of the year. You and Daddy are tied for first place.”_ She hung up.

And just to get another dig at her mother, Brooke had gone to Blair's house that night and had her help set up a profile; _@bdavis_

Her first picture uploaded to the account?

Her and Blair.

 

 

Captioned;

**_Never mess with the Queens._ **

 

 

Victoria had clearly seen the account; who hadn’t? Within an hour, Brooke had 2.9 million followers. And Mother Davis was _furious_.

The wretched woman called Brooke six times in a row after the picture and account went viral, texted non-stop, and even threatened to fly out to New York. But by morning; Brooke Davis was headline news; therefore, Davis Enterprises/Clothes over Bro’s was headline news as well. Even though Victoria was pissed and didn’t want her daughter to have anything to do with Blair – she knew good PR when she saw it, and this was definitely good PR.

Such good PR, that the little D-list CW actress decided to wear Brookes design after all.

Brooke liked to credit herself and the flawless dress she designed, rather than the flock of paparazzi’s that now followed her around, that changed the actress’ mind. But the press did seem to sway the red-head. Being seen wearing a dress designed by one of the most popular fashion designers at the moment was apparently good for your career.

It had been a few weeks since she created the account; and anytime she went out with Blair the vultures followed them around snapping pictures. It helped both of their businesses’. But it could be a bit overwhelming at times.

Even Haley and Peyton had made comments about how they can’t go on their phone without seeing hundreds of pictures of Brooke walking around Manhattan in their newsfeed. Brooke would laugh it off; joking about how difficult it was to be part of the lifestyles of the rich and famous. Her two hometown best friends made fun of her endlessly for that comment. Peyton even changed Brookes contact info in her phone to; _Ms. Diva Davis._

_“Just promise us you won’t go all Mariah Carey and forget us little people.”_ Haley teased.

_“I could never.”_ Brooke assured. _“You two have way too much dirt on me.”_

“-Wait! I thought we were going to that new Mexican restaurant!” Brooke complained as she and Serena walked down the street.

“I know, but I’ve been craving crepes like crazy.” Serena said, looping her arm with Brookes and gave her arm a little squeeze. “Plus, Blair says that the chef who was just hired is from New Orleans, and you know that no-one does crepes better than people from the Big Easy.”

Brooke laughed at that. “I think France might be offended to hear that.”

“-The Louisiana Purchase,” Serena reminded Brooke with a giggle.

Brooke bumped Serena’s hip with her own. “Yeah, yeah, I know. I did pay _some_ attention in history class, Mrs. Archibald.” She said, sticking her tongue out at the blonde. “I was just really looking forward to their Carne Asada. Not to mention I was planning on binge eating all the chips and salsa that they have in the restaurant.” Brooke said with a smirk as she looked to Serena.

“Hey there, beautiful.”

Brooke stopped walking, turning her head away from Serena and in the direction of the voice. She narrowed her eyes at the man standing in front of them.

“You do realize that I’m married, Carter.” Serena said in annoyance.

“I do,” Carter smirked at the tall blonde. “I was at your wedding. It was nice to actually be invited to this one – however, I wasn’t talking to you.” He looked to Brooke with a cocky grin. She simply glared at him. “Brooke,” He drawled out her name.

Brooke could feel her friend’s eyes on her, but simply looked away from both Carter and Serena. “What do you want, Baizen?” She finally looked up at him after a moment to mentally collect herself. God, his eyes were _so_ beautiful! Focus, Brooke! Focus!

“Well, I saw you were in the area and thought I’d see if you’d like to catch up.” He grinned.

Brooke scoffed at his words. “What? Are you stalking me now?”

He laughed at that. “You are on everyone's radar these days, it seems. It’s not stalking when your location is being blasted over every social media website.” He then looked back to Serena. “It’s almost like Gossip Girl is back.”

Who the hell was Gossip Girl? Brooke looked to Serena to see the blonde woman rolling her eyes at Carter. “Goodbye, Carter.” Serena said, tugging at Brookes arm and pulling her away.

“-Wait,” Carter called out, gently grabbing onto Brookes free hand. She stopped walking, looking over her shoulder at him. “Can we talk…please?”

Brooke sighed before looking back at Serena who was giving her a look of confusion.

“I’ll meet you inside, okay?”

Serena eyed Brooke and then Carter before she left, squeezing Brookes hand that Carter wasn’t holding. Brooke waited until Serena was inside the restaurant before looking back to Carter.

“What?” Brooke said, pulling her hand away from Carter.

“Thought I’d check in. Haven’t seen you in a while.” He shoved his hands in his pockets.

She looked at him in annoyed amusement; trying not to lose her temper. Brooke bit down on her lip and shook her head at what he had just said. “Yeah,” she bit out.

Carter sighed. “I had to go out of town. I was in Europe.”

“Really? Twenty minutes after you left my apartment? Wow, I’m impressed. Which airline did you use? I haven’t heard anything on the news about an airplane getting to Europe that quickly. Or, even an airport you can get to that fast from my place. Impressive.” Brooke faked a smile.

Carter licked at his lower lip and closed his eyes. “I had to deal with a few things.”

“-Good for you.” Brooked told him, “-Now if you’ll excuse me. I have to go to lunch with my friends.” Brooke pat him on the chest before moving past him.

“Brooke,” He called out.

“-Goodbye, Baizen.” Brooke hollered with a wave of dismissal, back still facing him as she walked away from and to the restaurant. She didn’t even spare him a second glance as she entered the building.

She sat down at the table Blair and Serena were at, both of them looking at her with raised brows. She brushed it off; saying that it was nothing. Brooke changed the subject quickly, but somehow it kept getting brought back to Carter.

“-How do you even know him?” Serena asked.

Brooke looked to Blair, surprised that she hadn’t said anything to Serena. Brooke shrugged, taking a drink from her green tea. “Well, Missy Blair sat me in the worst row at your wedding.” She smirked at Blair who gave her an innocent smile. “Carter was there too.”

“Why did you invite him?” Blair asked, helping Brooke change the focus to Serena, and not her.  “I mean, you two didn’t exactly end things on good terms. And doesn’t Nate hate him?”

“Nate actually was the one to invite him.” Serena told them.

Both Brooke and Blair looked at Serena in surprise.

“You’re joking, right?” Blair said in disbelief.

“Nope.” Serena replied. “When Nate and I first started dating again, Carter showed up to Nate's office with a check for fifteen-grand.”

Brooke gapped at that. “What? Why?”

Serena went on to tell the story of the Lost Weekend, how Carter had tricked Nate into going to a rigged poker game with him. Nate had lost fifteen grand playing with Carter and his little poker buddies – and earlier that day, Carter had stolen a prized baseball and expensive watch from Chuck suite. When Chuck had showed up to the game after Nate had texted him the location; he convinced Carter to let Nate go without paying his debt – and that if he let Nate go, that Carter could keep the baseball and watch. That the two combined were well over $15,000.

“Carter said he was making amends to the people who he had wronged. Nate didn’t believe him, until Chuck called him and told him that Carter stopped by and gave him back the baseball and watch he had stolen.” Serena told her friends.

Brooke knew that Carter was four years gamble-free; but she didn’t think either Blair or Serena knew that.

“Chuck never told me that,” Blair began to pick at her cloth napkin. She quickly composed herself. “So, what? Nate decided to invite him to the wedding because he paid him and Chuck back?”

“Nate said that it was time to put the past in the past and think about our future instead. If we held onto old grudges for the rest of our lives; we’d never truly be happy.” Serena shrugged. “So, I told Nate that I was fine with him coming to the wedding. I actually didn’t even know he showed up.”

Blair and Brooke exchanged a look that did not go unnoticed by Serena.

“-Back to you.” Serena looked at Brooke. “What’s going on with you two?”

She scoffed, “Absolutely nothing.”

Serena grinned at Brooke, seeing through her lies.

“Nothing!” Brooke said again, more forceful.

Serena held up her hands, “Okay,” she chuckled. “Oh, yay! The crepes!” She said happily once she saw their waiter bringing out their orders.

Brooke frowned. _She had really wanted Mexican food._  

 

* * *

 

 

After a stressful phone call with her mother, telling Brooke she couldn’t keep ignoring Alexander's emails, Brooke was finally back home in her apartment, slipping off her high heels and kicking them into her closet. The brunette unzipped the dark red dress she was wearing and shimmied out of the tight-fitting outfit. There were times Brooke really wished she could wear something simple to the office; but since Victoria had convinced Brooke to add ‘Couture’ to her list of designs, she had to dress like a responsible business owner. Even while she was out on the town with Blair and Serena she had to be dressed up like a proper business woman.

Which she hated.

Brooke felt the most comfortable in simple outfits; not the pant suits and dresses she had to wear every day. Besides; there were only a few more weeks left of nice summer weather before fall started and she’d have to bundle up. Brooke just wanted to wear a pair of cute shorts and a tank top every now and then – or even a sundress. But that would be impossible now; with every paparazzo in Manhattan tracking her every move. She could have gotten away with it a few months ago when she first moved to New York - now? Not so much.  

There were times where Brooke just wanted to be normal again. Not; _Brooke Davis the fashion designer._ But just Brooke Davis. When she was in her apartment, that’s where she could unwind and be herself. That’s where she could lay out on her couch and try to binge watch whatever popular show everyone was talking about on Netflix. She had just finished watching _‘Stranger Things’_ with Nate and Serena. Currently; she and Blair were watching _‘The Crown’_ together. Brooke argued that Jonathan Rhys Meyers was a total fox and that they should watch _‘The Tudors’_ but Blair told her that she and Chucked used to role play being Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn and Brooke decided she would probably never be able to watch _The Tudors_ ever again.

Now, Brooke was never one to shame role-playing; she dabbled in it quite a bit. BUT, when you are role playing a woman who ends up getting her head cut off by her _loving_ husband in the end – that’s where she’d draw the line. But historic role playing was apparently Blairs thing. Brooke on the other hand preferred the simpler roleplaying: teacher-student seduction, pizza boy, naughty French maid, and of course; the plumber coming to fix her pipes.

Really, any stereotypical porn movie scenario. She probably should expand her role-playing horizons though.

Brooke changed into a nice pair purple shorts that she had taken from Victoria’s Secret while she was an intern. The words P.I.N.K written across her backside. Brooke rummaged through her second drawer of her dresser until she found a t-shirt to put on. It was gray with the words ‘Tree Hill Ravens’ written in dark letters on the fabric. It made her smile.

Brooke had gotten the shirt her freshman year when she made the cheerleading squad. Peyton had made fun of Brooke for holding onto it, to which Brooke replied; _you really think I’d get rid of a t-shirt from high school when I still keep my cheer uniform in the back of my closet? Come on, P. Sawyer, you know me better than that._

In the comfort of her own home; Brooke ran her fingers through her hair after taking out the pinned back style she wore to work. She huffed, looking at herself in the mirror of her banister and shook her head. She wished she could have Serena’s perfect hair. Brooke had seen her post-pregnancy morning sickness throw-up, walk out of the bathroom and look like a Disney freakin’ princess. Jesus, did singing birds hold her hair back as she puked? It was unfair.

Brooke threw her hair up in a messy bun, not even bothering to make it look decent. Instead, she grabbed her _Perlo Throw_ and wrapped it around her shoulders, heading out of her room and through her apartment until she reached the living room. She curled up on her couch after grabbing her remotes and turned on the TV, setting up Netflix on the screen.

She was in the middle of looking through the queue Blair had set up for her when there was a knocking on her door.

Brooke groaned, tossing off the blanket and huffed as she walked to her door. It was only six, she had gone home early – but unless this was the damn Queen of England, whoever was knocking on her door right now interrupting her Netflix time was going to get a mouth full once she opened the door.

“I brought Mexican food.” Carter said after Brooke opened the door only to see him standing on the other side holding two large brown bags up, there were two more large brown bags on the ground next to him.

She stood there, in a mix of shock and anger, and now hunger for Mexican food. She really had been craving it earlier; and it didn’t help that that aroma from the brown bags was making her mouth water. But Brooke kept strong.

“If you didn’t pick up the vibes I was sending you earlier today, let me simply spell it out for you. The raincheck? Expired. So, if you’re here to,”

“You told Serena you wanted Mexican food. Carne asada?” He held up the brown bag in his left hand higher. He then held up the bag in his right hand. “Now, I couldn’t get _all_ the chips and salsa in the restaurant I went to for you to binge on – but I did get quite a bit.” He smirked.

Brooke tried to keep her face unreadable; but her stomach growling loudly was betraying her. But she stayed standing in her doorway, hands on her hips as she stared at Carter.

“Also, I didn’t know what sides you get – so I kinda got them all. Rice, beans, refried and pinto, a few things I can’t pronounce correctly,” Brooke fought the smile twitching at the corners of her mouth. “And of course; your chips and salsa. I also got pico de gallo.”

Brooke pursed out her lips as if she were thinking it over. “Is the salsa spicy?” She asked with a kinked brow.

He grinned at her. “I didn’t know which spice level you like; so, I had them give me each one they had.”

“You can come in.” Brooke said after a moment, liking the anxious look on Carter's face as she made him wait to hear her answer. He smirked, bending down to pick up the other two bags on the ground. “But-” Brooke stopped him once he stood up straight and took a step forward. She placed her hand against his chest to keep him still. “The raincheck is still expired.”

“Of course.” He said, taking another step forward.

But Brooke kept a firm hold against his chest. “I’m serious.” She told him. “The only reason why I’m even letting you in my home is because you brought food.” Her hand fell from his chest and Brooke turned, walking into her home and telling Carter to shut and lock the door behind him.

The two adults stood in the kitchen together, Brooke grabbing herself a plate from the cabinets before she began to open up the brown bags. She looked up at Carter who was looking down at his hands, rocking back and forth on the heels of his feet.

“I had to go to Europe to get my sister…Caroline.” He finally spoke as Brooke was dishing food onto her plate. She looked up through her lashes, but continued to keep busy serving herself. When Brooke had looked into Carter; she didn’t find out much about his sister. He had mentioned her when he was telling her that he wasn’t after her money – but that was it. Then again, they didn’t exactly have conversations with one another.

The wedding was the only time they really talked for more than five minutes. Well, and when she was drunk – but she didn’t remember what the hell they talked about. The back room in the club didn’t really count as a conversation either.

“She uh, she got into some trouble in Dublin.” Carter admitted to Brooke. “When our parents died…she took it a bit harder than me. She took the money they left her and bailed.”

Brooke didn’t really know what to say. He was opening up to her – she guessed he rarely did that with people. Blair had mentioned that Serena had bruised his pride when she got him out of his debt – would his pride be wounded again by him opening up to her? Brooke simply turned her back to him, reaching into the cabinet again and grabbed a second plate and handed it over to him after returning to the kitchen island, not bothering to look up at him as she did it.

Carter took the plate from her and began to go through the bags as well.

“I got a call from a hospital in Dublin.” Carter told her, her eyes snapped up to him, hands no longer moving to dish herself up. “Caroline had over-dosed,”

“Carter, I’m sorry…” Brooke said, setting her pride aside.

He didn’t look up at her, instead, scooped up some rice onto his plate. “They got her back. I was actually on the phone with the hospital when you texted me.”

Brooke closed her eyes, feeling incredibly guilty for getting so upset. It wasn’t like Carters world revolved around her reaching out to him – they hardly knew each other.

“I stayed with her in Dublin for a few weeks – got her into a good rehab. But she just wanted to come back to New York. When she had overdosed, she was twelve weeks pregnant.”

Brookes eyes widened at that.

“The baby?” She asked in a whisper.

Carter simply shook his head.

Brooke bit down on her lower lip once she was done filling her plate. She had been upset that he hadn’t returned her text or called – but now that she knew why; she felt incredibly embarrassed. And felt a wave of sympathy for Carter as well. She took in a deep breath before grabbing the bag of chips and salsa, holding her plate in her other hand as she left the kitchen and walked into the living room, leaving Carter standing at the island.

She took a seat on the couch and set her plate down on the coffee table and opened up the brown bag full of chips and pulled out the large container of salsa.

“I’m about to re-watch _From Dusk Till Dawn: The Series,_ but if you want to just stand in my kitchen by yourself, feel free.” Brooke finally spoke, starting up the show.

It took a moment before the couch was occupied by them both, she placed the bag of chips between them but kept the salsa on the coffee table.

“They made From Dusk Till Dawn into a TV series?” Carter spoke as it started. “And you’ve watched it more than once?”

Brooke smirked, taking a bite of her carne asada. “Yes.” She replied after swallowing. “The guy who plays Seth Gecko is a total fox. Way hotter than George Clooney.”

“Hmm,” Carter made a noise in response.

They ate in silence, watching the show and brushing fingers while reaching for the chips.

Each time her skin touched his it sent a shock of warmth in her body.

_Dammit._

The raincheck was **EXPIRED.**

 

* * *

 

 

Carter and Brooke had ended up watching most of season one. They would pause between each episode and Carter would try and tell her that George Clooney made a better Seth Gecko in the original movie and Brooke would scoff at that, telling him that he was just insecure because he could never pull off Seth’s tattoos. That led to Carter asking Brooke if she had any tattoos, to which she smirked and wiggled her brows; _wouldn’t you like to know._

The more time she spent talking with Carter the more she began to like him. Which fucking sucked. It was one thing when she was simply attracted to him physically – she could push the attraction away, shove it deep down until it was buried. Or semi, because no matter how hard she tried to push away her attraction towards Carter – it was pretty damn difficult when he was looking at her with those gorgeous grey-blue eyes and that damn smirk that made her insides warm. BUT, she was able to control herself.

But he wasn’t just good-looking Carter, charming flirty Carter – he was sweet, funny, and smart. They didn’t talk much about his sister, only that he had brought her back to New York and she was staying at some private rehab center. He also told her that growing up they weren’t the closest of siblings, that he regretted it. But she was a year older than him and Caroline didn’t exactly enjoy the fact that most of her friends had slept with him during their high-school years. Brooke had to chuckle at that.

_Yeah, I’m kinda glad I didn’t have any siblings growing up,_ Brooke had admitted to Carter. _I mean, I used to want a sister. Mostly so I wouldn’t have been so alone as a child…but uh, Tree Hill siblings usually end up sleeping with the same people. So, I’m glad I didn’t have to go through that._

Carter had grinned at her after she said that.

They had started up the next episode after that. Around the second act, Brooke had fallen asleep, her head falling on Carters shoulder in the process. When she opened her eyes, she was being set down in her bed, she looked up at Carter groggily as he brushed the hair out of her face, his hand lingering against her cheek, thumb brushing her skin in soothing circular motions.

In her sleepy haze, Brooke had grabbed at his hand as he pulled away, taking a step backwards.

_“Stay,”_ she mumbled. He had looked down at her with a slight frown, his thumb rubbing against her hand now. _“Please...”_ She whispered.

Carter let go of her hand and walked around the other side of her bed before he climbed in.

Brooke had snuggled up against him, face nuzzled against his chest and her arms wrapped around his stomach. _“The raincheck is still expired, though.”_ She mumbled and felt his chest rumble as his arm wrapped around his waist, thumb rubbing against her exposed skin. She fell asleep easily tucked against his side with his arms wrapped around her.

She was in deep shit.

Brooke woke up when she felt the warm body next to her move, she gave into a sleepy whine, reaching out to try and bring him back to her. Carter simply laughed as he got out of her bed.

“I got to go.” He told her.

Brooke opened her eyes and frowned at him.

He scratched at the back of his neck before clearing his throat. “Uh, Caroline has this group thing today. Her counselor said it’d help if I was there for her during it.”

Brooke nodded her head, smiling up at him. “Go,” she told him as she sat up on the bed. “I should get up and get ready to head to the office.” She said with a sigh, “Got to put on the uniform that is Brooke Davis.” She rolled her eyes.

When she looked back up at Carter, he was smirking.

“What?” She playfully narrowed her eyes.

“Nothing,” His smirk formed into a smile. “The uniform of Brooke Davis…it’s nothing compared to the real Brooke Davis.” Brooke looked down, biting her lip as she smiled.  “Especially in that tight little Tree Hill Ravens shirt you got on.”

Brooke closed her eyes and blushed. “Shut up,” she laughed.

“Those little shorts are pretty sexy too.”

“-Okay, go!” Brooke threw her pillow at him. When she looked back up at him, he was smiling down at her. Brooke licked at her lower lip before she finally spoke up. “Thank you for the Mexican food. It was surprisingly nice to spend time with you.” Brooke teased.

Carter laughed.

“We should do this again.” Brooke spoke softly. Carter raised his brows at her suggestively. “Hang out.” She clarified what she meant.

“Well,” He walked forward until his knees touched Brookes bed, she held her breath as she looked up at him. “We do have to watch the rest of From Dusk till Dawn. You can’t just get me hooked on a show and then not invite me back over to watch the rest.”

Brooke grinned. “Does that mean you’re admitting that _my_ Seth Gecko is superior to George Clooney’s Seth Gecko?” She kinked her eyebrow up in a challenge.

“-Only if you admit that I could pull off his tattoos.”

“Never.” Brooke shook her head. 

Carter leaned forward at that, brushing his lips against her cheek before whispering in her ear; “Well there’s your answer.”

Brooke had to take a deep breath once he was finally gone, trying to calm her racing heart.

_Damn you, Carter Baizen._

When she left her apartment to go to work; she wasn’t wearing her normal work attire. Brooke was wearing something she felt more comfortable in. Instead of a fashionable pant suit or a fancy yet professional dress – she went for something more casual.

Brooke Davis was never one to follow the rules – so why would she follow the rules that a successful woman should stick to the normal business attire when it was so much more comfortable to wear skinny jeans and a white t-shirt.

And of course, a black blazer.

Just because she was no longer going to listen to ‘the man’ (well, her mother) and going against dressing ‘professional’ didn’t mean she wasn’t going to look hot as hell while doing it.

And the black blazer was indeed, hot as hell on her.

 

* * *

 

Carter had been coming over every night for the last two weeks, and though each night before Brooke opened the door to let him in, she’d tell herself that he would not be spending the night – he still ended up in her bed each night.

TO SLEEP.

They hadn’t even kissed yet.

_Or ever will,_ she argued with herself. They were friends. Two adults could be friends, even male and female adults. But every night she’d end up dozing off (or fake sleeping) and he’d pick her up in his arms and bring her into the bedroom. Around the fourth time of Brooke grabbing at his hand and asking him to stay, he just started to get into her bed right after setting her down, wrapping her up in his arms, pulling her back against his chest and would rest his face against the crook of her neck.

And it was one of the best damn feeling in the world – which she fucking hated.

Falling asleep in Carters arms was pretty good, but waking up to him was even better.

Especially on the rare days that he was still asleep when she’d wake up and Brooke could watch him for a bit (totally creepy, yeah, whatever) but his face was so relaxed and his lips would always be in such a pouty plump that it was getting increasingly hard not to just move forward and press her lips to his to wake him up. Brooke would watch the way his eyes would flutter fast under his eyelids as he slept. Sometimes she’d even be brave enough to run her finger along his jaw. A jaw that Brooke believed Zeus himself carved from marble (minus the bit a stubble) but Brooke actually enjoyed the way Carters stubble would scratch against the tip of her finger.

The only problem with Carter coming over and staying the night for the last two weeks was that Brooke was constantly having to come up with excuses when Blair would bring up meeting for dinner. Brooke would suggest having lunch but they had only gone out maybe three times in the last two weeks. Which was hard on Brooke. Because the more time she spent away from Blair, the more she realized how much she depended on their friendship. She had realized that not a day had gone by where she hadn’t at least talked to Blair on the phone since they mended fences. The fact that she had seen Blair only three times in two weeks and barely spoke on the phone with her was nagging at Brooke.

And when Brooke woke up this morning, she didn’t feel happy or content in Carters arms. She felt strange – like something was wrong. And when Brooke had called Blair that morning after Carter had left, she hadn’t picked up.

Brooke tried to push the feelings aside and went to the office.

After Serena had complained to her about not being able to fit into most of her clothes now, and the fact that most maternity outfits these days were less than appealing, Brooke was struck with inspiration. Davis Enterprises would be soon be venturing into yet another line.

Even with Victoria’s harsh words whispering in her ear that she didn’t have a mind for business, Brooke continued on – drawing up papers to try and pitch the idea for a new line to her board members and her very difficult CEO, who just happened to be her mother.

Carter had actually been the one to help her a bit with the business side of all of it.

_“Maternity line?”_ Carter smirked at her. _“Getting a little ahead of yourself, don’t you think?”_ He teased as she showed him the sketches in-between episodes.

Brooke rolled her eyes at that. _“Shut up!”_ She snatched the papers back from him. _“All the little starlets are getting pregnant these days – I’d be an idiot not to get in on that action.”_ Carter raised his brows at that. _“In a business sense!”_ Brooke clarified and swatted at his arm. _“Jackass.”_

Brooke had come up with half of an entire sketch book of designs for the new line. She mostly would work on them while watching From Dusk till Dawn with Carter, they were almost done with season two now. She could see out of the corner of her eye that Carter would be watching her, a lazy smile on his face as he watched her work. So, she’d move her foot and kick at him and tell him to pay attention to the show because she wasn’t going to go back if he missed any crucial information.

She felt so relaxed with him – more than she did with any other guy before. He even had a way of calming her after she got off the phone with her mother, who was bitching about the outfits she was seen wearing to work or around the city, _“People won’t take you seriously when you’re prancing around in jeans! You need to be professional!”_

_“You do not get to dictate what I do and do not wear, mother! You are not the boss of me.”_

Victoria scoffed at that. _“Yes, but I’m your CEO.”_

Brooke had to grip onto the couch upon hearing her mother’s words. _“Yes, mother. You are the CEO. Of a company that **I** own and am that head designer of – without me, you don’t have the clothes!” _Brooke yelled. _“And if you want to continue being CEO, you’d be wise to remember that!”_

Brooke had hung up and fought the urge to throw her phone across the room. She sighed, dropping her head in her hands and closed her eyes. And then she felt Carter grab hold of her by the elbow, pulling her until she was curled up against his side on the couch, his arms wrapped around her and started up the show. He had even dropped a kiss on the top of her head. It was exactly what she needed.

She didn’t need some pep talk telling her how great she was or that her mother was a bitch. Brooke just needed someone to be there with her in that moment, not speaking, just holding onto her so she knew she wasn’t alone.

Brooke looked up from her sketch pad when her phone started ringing. She had gotten home maybe fifteen minutes ago, still in a pair of black jeans and a dark purple shirt that she had worn under a black leather jacket that Peyton had given her years ago when they first moved to LA. 

She had picked the jacket that morning for the single reason that she knew Victoria hated it. When Brooke wore it after Peyton had given it to her; Victoria made a comment about how Brooke looked like a trashy biker’s girlfriend.

Peyton was quick to defend Brooke, as always; _“Well, at least she doesn’t look like a stuck-up bitch who has her nose so high up in the sky that she could probably smell a Higher Beings asshole.”_

Brooke picked up the phone when she saw Serena’s cheery face flashing on her screen.

“What’s up, Blondie?”

_“Have you seen the news?”_

Brooke set down her sketch pad on the coffee table. “No.”

_“Gone on Twitter?”_  

“No. Why?” She sat up a bit and pulled the phone away from her ear, putting the phone on speaker as she opened her app for twitter. “Holy shit.” Brooke said once the app opened and an onslaught of tweets filled her timeline about Blair. “What the fuck!” Brooke now shouted.

 She read the tweets.

 

**_Waldorf Designs OVER_ **

****

**_Bye, Bye, Waldorf!_ **

****

**_CEO and head designer Blair Waldorf steps down from Waldorf Designs_ **

****

**_Ex-husband of Waldorf; Chuck Bass, now owner of Waldorf Designs_ **

****

**_Waldorf signs company over to ex-husband Bass_ **

 

 

“-Is this for real?”

_“I don’t know! Blair won’t answer my calls! I’m getting in a car now and on my way to her place.”_ Serena said, and Brooke could hear a door shutting behind her.

“Pick me up on your way. I’m coming too.”

_“I’ll be there in ten.”_

Brooke hung up and quickly grabbed her bag off the kitchen table, slipping on a pair of flats and grabbing her leather jacket off the coat rack and shoved her arms through until it was on.

When she opened the door to her apartment, Carter was standing there with a box of pizza in his hands.

“Eager?” He smirked. “Or did you just smell the pizza from inside?”

“-I gotta go,” Brooke told him, moving past him and quickly locking the door after shutting.

“Whoa, what’s going on.” Carter said, following her down the hall when she started walking. “Are you okay?” His voice was laced with concern.

“I’m fine.” She said, still walking to try and get to the elevator. “Confused as _hell,_ but I’m okay.” Brooke pressed on the elevator button to have it open and take her downstairs. She tapped her foot on the floor as she waited. Carter stood by her side, still holding the box of pizza.

“Brooke,” he said softly, his hand touching her arm and turning her to look at him. “What’s going on?”

She sighed, closing her eyes before speaking. “I have no idea. Which is really shitty. I’ve been blowing Blair off for the past two weeks and apparently I _really_ shouldn’t have been!” Brooke locked her jaw, trying to keep her anger at bay. She wanted to lash out at Carter, blame him and make it his fault that she had been blowing off Blair. But he wasn’t putting a gun to her head. Carter didn’t even know that Blair had been trying to make plans with Brooke. This was all her own fault. Blair needed her and she wasn’t there all because she had started to fall for Carter.

“What’s going on with Waldorf?” Carter asked once the elevator door opened and they both got inside. “Her and Bass having issues again?”

Brooke scoffed at that, simply out of anger – not annoyance. And not anger towards him. “Blair signed over Waldorf Designs to that Bass-hole.” She shook her head and looked to Carter. “There is _no_ way Blair would just give up her company – the company her mother started! She’d clutch onto it with bloody fingers if someone tried to take it from her – this isn’t right. Something is going on.”

They reached the main lobby and Brooke walked out of the elevator. She turned and looked back at Carter who was stepping off the elevator a few feet behind her.

He stood there, eyes on the ground.

“I’m sorry, I gotta go.” She told him as she looked out the glass doors of her apartment building to the street, she turned back to look at him.

He nodded and looked back up, giving her a soft smile. “It’s okay.” Carter walked over to where she stood. “Call me later, okay?”

Brooke nodded, smiling softly. “I will.” She promised. She closed her eyes when he moved forward and pressed his lips to her forehead, to which Brooke only moved herself closer to him and the touch of his lips.

When he pulled away, Brooke opened her eyes to see him smiling down at her. “Here,” he handed her the box of pizza. “Waldorf can pretend she’s better than someone who eats pizza – but we all know women need comfort food in a crisis.” He smirked.

Brooke smiled at him fondly, taking the box of pizza from him. “Thank you, Carter.”

Carter nodded. “Go.” He told her. “Be there for your friend. Even if she’s Blair Waldorf.”

She did.

 

* * *

  

The car was already there with Serena waiting outside for Brooke – traffic had been light, which in Manhattan was a miracle. Brooke had quickly got into the cab, handing Serena to box of pizza as she got situated, trying to call Blair now.

She didn’t answer either.

“Pizza?” Serena said in a light tone.

Brooke set her phone down after hanging up. “Yeah, I, uh, it came right before you called.”

Serena simply made a humming noise at that.

“Has Blair mentioned _anything_ to you about Chuck lately? Or anything about her company?”

“No,” Serena shook her head. “I mean, Nate told me he had talked to Chuck and he told him that the custody battle was getting a little messy. But that’s it. Blair hadn’t said anything. What about you? You guys went to lunch together a few days ago.”

“She never mentioned Chuck or the company.” Mostly they had talked about Dan. Blair mentioned what a good time he was having talking to Lucas, and Brooke had told Blair that Peyton had called her and said that Lucas had been writing non-stop since he started talking to Dan.

Blair had made a joke saying that maybe Dan was Lucas’ muse. Just light stuff like that – nothing about her asshole ex-husband somehow managing to get Blair to sign over her company to him.

“He has got to have something on her. You told me how they were together, always scheming – when I first met him he tried to make Blair out as a bad guy by telling me she released my time capsule entry. Too bad for him, he doesn’t know not to mess with Brooke Davis and her friends; I told him off on the spot. Chuck has something on her – or is threatening her with Henry. You said that Nate told you Chuck said the custody was getting messy…what if he’s saying she can’t see Henry unless she signs over her company.”

Serena shook her head, setting the box of pizza down on the space between her and Brooke. “Chuck has stooped pretty low before but…if he is threatening to take Henry away from her to have her sign over her company....” She closed her eyes, running her fingers through her long blonde hair. “He won’t be able to come back from this.”

“He is _not_ going to get away with this.” Brooke swore to Serena.

The car pulled up in front of Blairs place and the two women quickly got out of the car, Serena grabbing the pizza last minute after forgetting it. 

“Grimaldi’s.” Serena said as they walked into the building. “I haven’t had their pizza in years…you get their pizza often?”

Brooke looked to her side at Serena, not understanding what she was getting at. “Uh, yes. Sometimes.” Brooke spotted the elevator starting to open and hustled to catch it before it closed. “Come on!” She told Serena once she was holding the door open. She watched as the tall blonde hurried, still holding onto the box of pizza.

They rode the elevator up in silence to Blair's penthouse.

Blair was sitting on her couch, Henry’s little head on her lap as he slept, her fingers running softly against his head full of thick brown hair. She was staring down at him with a smile so absolutely full of love that it made Brookes heart ache; it was a way a mother should look at her child. Brooke, unfortunately, never had her parents look at her that way. Blair looked up when Brooke and Serena now stood in front of her. She sighed, closing her eyes and slowly picked up Henry in her arms and motioned for them to follow her.

Brooke and Serena followed Blair up the stairs and waited in the hallway while Blair tucked her son into bed. When she came back out, quietly shutting the door behind her, she beckoned them to follow her into her bedroom.

Once inside, with the door left slightly open just in case Henry woke up, Blair sat down on the very end of her bed, moving forward and took off her heels. “I’m sure you are here because you went on twitter.”

“-We shouldn’t have had to find out about it _from_ twitter, Blair. Why didn’t you say anything?” Serena asked. But Brooke stayed quiet.

“It’s not a big deal,” Blair tried to blow it all off, moving off her bed and walking into her large closet. Brooke and Serena looked to one another, a simple shake of their head at what Blair had just said.

“-It’s not a big deal?” Serena echoed her words. “Blair…Waldorf Designs is your _literal_ namesake. It means everything to you! I do not believe you would just give it up! Especially to Chuck!”

Blair walked out of her closet, now in a silk light blue robe. “It’s not everything to me.” She argued Serena’s earlier statement.

“Blair,” Brooke finally spoke up as she followed after Blair who took a seat on her bed again. “You have worked your ass off to make your company what it is today – you would do anything to keep it. Hell, you tried to take me down just because I was your competition. I do not believe you would just give it away. _Yes,_ there is more to life than having the company – but you’re a damn warrior, Blair. You can be a super-mom and a kick ass designer! You told me that you dreamed of taking over for your mom since you were a little girl!” Brooke took a seat next to Blair, moving a bit so she could face her. “Blair…what does he have you on? Because I sure as hell don’t believe you’d just sign your namesake over to him. Not unless you absolutely had to. 

Blair didn’t say anything.

“B…” Serena now knelt down at Blairs knees, hands holding onto hers. “What is going on? We’re here for you, okay? Both of us. Nate is too. Whatever Chuck has on you…we can fight it!”

Blair closed her eyes, turning her head away from Serena and Brooke. She finally looked back at Serena. “Waldorf Designs just isn’t what it used to be. It’s been downhill since I took over for my mother. 

“That is _not_ true!” Brooke argued. “Blair – Waldorf Designs has been my _biggest_ competition. Even before I moved to New York.”

Blair rolled her eyes. “Yes, so much competition, Brooke.” She looked at Brooke. “Do you not remember me trying to swipe every deal from you and failing miserably? Embarrassing myself, my company – my mother! You know what – it doesn’t matter!” Blair huffed. “There is no more Waldorf Designs, okay? It’s gone. I signed it away.”

“But to _Chuck_?” Serena didn’t buy it. And neither did Brooke. “Is this because of the custody battle? Did he threaten to take Henry from you or something?”

“No,” Blair shook her head. “Okay, it isn’t about that.”

“Then what is it?” Brooke asked, voice soft as she grabbed a hold of Blair's hand.

Blairs eyes landed on Brooke, looking at her for a long moment before holding her head high and saying. “-It was just time to let it go. It’s not everything.”

“This isn’t right.” Brooke shook her head.

“-This isn’t _you_.” Serena added.

Brooke tried to rack her head with what Chuck may have on Blair that didn’t involve Henry. And then it dawned on her. _Dan Humphrey._

Blair still snuck around hiding her friendship/relationship (Brooke didn’t really know what it was – all she knew was that it made Blair happy) and Chuck _must_ have found out. Blair said he learned to always keep a P.I around from his father. He must have had someone following Blair.

“People change.” Blair finally said.

Brooke felt anger fill her, driving her to let go of Blair's hand and stand up. “There’s pizza downstairs.” The brunette said to Blair. “I am going to go do something and then I’ll come right back, okay?” She started walking towards the door.

“Brooke,” Blair called after her, almost panicked. As if she knew that Brooke was about to go confront Chuck Bass. “Brooke, no, please!” Blair followed after Brooke now, hurrying after her down the hall and taking quick steps down the stairs. Just as Brooke stood foot in the private elevator; Blair grabbed at her arm, yanking her away from the elevator. “Brooke!”

Serena was nowhere in sight, so Brooke took the opportunity to whisper to Blair. “Is this about Dan? Did he find out you’ve been going to Brooklyn?” She kept her voice so quiet she hoped Blair was able to hear her.

“No, it’s not that. Just _please_ , let it go. Okay? Please.”

“No!” Brooke argued. “This isn’t right!”

“-Chuck paid one of my interns to sneak into my office and send that letter to Alexander. I found out a few days ago and I confronted him.”

“Well, that just gives me more reason to go walk my ass into his office and punch him in his stupid face!” Brooke said in anger.

Serena was walking over to them now.

“The letter was just the tip of the iceberg, okay?” Blair tried to stress to Brooke, trying to make her understand something that she just didn’t. There was more to this – but Brooke didn’t know what the hell it was. “So please…just stay here, okay? Be here. Don’t go confront him, please…. just stay.”

Brooke sighed, closing her eyes before she finally nodded. “Okay.” She agreed, eyes now open and looking right at Blair. “But Chuck can’t keep getting away with doing this shit. Karma _will_ come to bite him in the ass.”

“Just…let it be karma. Not you.” Blair made Brooke promise.

It was a hard promise to keep. But she would.


	5. Truth Hurts

* * *

 

Brooke unlocked her apartment door, stepping inside at about 9 in the morning. She and Serena had spent the night with Blair, where the former fashion designer still refused to say what Chuck has on her that would make her sign away her company. It wasn’t right – none of this was. She sighed, slipping out of her flats and set her purse down on the table by the door, pulling her phone out of one of its pockets and walked into her kitchen where she knew a spare charger was already plugged into an outlet. Brooke had turned off her phone around the seventh time Victoria called her, probably wanting to throw some sort of damn party at the fall of the Waldorf Empire. Brooke  _ really  _ did not understand Victoria’s hatred towards Blair. 

Brooke plugged in her phone and set it down on the counter after turning it on. 

Jamie’s happy face greeted her, his smile wide and two of his front teeth missing. She had taken it before she moved to New York – taking a trip to Seattle before she left LA for good. But just as quickly as his face appeared, she was bombarded with missed calls, voicemail messages, texts, and even two missed facetime calls from her mother. She swiped the missed calls and facetimes calls away, ignoring the texts before she unlocked her phone and put the phone to her ear to hear the voice messages her mother had left her. 

_ “I just saw the news! Is it true! God, this is so perfect! That little bitch finally got taken down.”  _

Brooke deleted that one before she bothered even listening to the rest of it. 

_ “Brooke, call me back. We need to come up with some sort of PR spin for this. Davis Enterprises conquers Waldorf Designs.”  _

Brooke rolled her eyes at that before deleting it again – still not finishing all of it. Jesus, her mother sounded like some sort of Game of Thrones fan.  _ House Davis defeats House Waldorf in the battle for the throne!  _

_ “Why are you not answering? You should be celebrating! If you are with that little bitch, I swear to God, Brooke – I will throw your ass back on a plane to LA. Do  _ **_not_ ** _ associate yourself with her!”  _

Delete.

_ “So, I heard from a few reliable sources that she signed her company over to Chuck Bass. If you’ve seen him; you know the man has zero fashion sense. So, he’s probably going to try and hire some of the best designers. We need to get our hands on them before he does,” _

Delete. 

Brooke didn’t bother to listen to any more, simply deleted them without listening. She set her phone down after skimming through her texts from her mother. Brooke knew it was probably not the smartest thing to do – but she deleted her mother’s entire thread of texts messages to her. Hoping that there was nothing important in there that she might need later. Brooke just did not need to see a string of texts of her mother celebrating Blair losing her company.

When she opened her fridge, Brooke had groaned. She had nothing in there. Just some spoiled milk that went bad about two days ago. Seeing as Brooke was barely at home for breakfast and lunch – and given that for the past two weeks she and Carter had been eating take-out, she didn’t really have any reason to go shopping. 

But she was starving. 

She  _ could  _ go out to breakfast. She could even try to go grocery shopping. But she was so tired. 

Brooke took today off from work, calling and telling Millie that she’d be working from home today. She wanted to be able to get to Blairs fast if she needed her, and if Blair hadn’t kicked hers and Serena’s asses out of her place this morning – she would have just stayed there. Hovering and fussing over Blair to make sure she was okay. Brooke had even offered to take Henry for a few hours, but Blair said she was planning on taking Henry to the park in the afternoon, wanting to spend the entire day with him.

Blair had told her to go to work – but she wasn’t going too. It was bad enough that Blair was stopping her from marching right up to Chuck Bass and socking him in the stupid/smug/dumb face. If Brooke couldn’t go after Chuck, she was going to at least take the day off in case Blair needed her. 

She shut the refrigerator door and began to look through the cupboard’s, even though she knew she wasn’t going to find anything in there either.  Not surprising, she found absolutely nothing in there. She really did need to go shopping. Brooke walked over to where her phone was charging and unlocked her phone, going to her recent calls, scrolling through the long line of missed called from Bitchtoria. 

She pressed one of the last people to have called her. Brooke turned and leaned against the counter as she listened to the phone ring. 

_ “Good morning, beautiful.”  _

“Thanks to you, I have been neglecting going shopping for actual food. You know, the kind you buy at an actual store? Not that kind that gets delivered to you in a brown bag or a pizza box, or containers that you can eat on the couch. I have absolutely  _ no  _ food in my house, Carter.” Brooke complained. 

He chuckled on the other line,  _ “Why do you think I always leave in the morning?”  _

She scoffed at that, rolling her eyes. “Maybe because I kick your ass out.” 

He full on laughed at that.  _ “I do not recall you ever doing that. Sometimes you even try to get me to stay. But like you said, you have zero food in your house. So I leave.”  _

“Rude,” Brooke huffed as she hopped onto the counter, her butt now pressed firmly against the cool marble.

_ “Since when do you eat breakfast at home anyway – you’re usually at your office by now.”  _

“I took the day off.” 

_ “Waldorf doing okay?” _

Brooke smiled a bit, just for the simple fact that Carter knew that she was taking the day off because of Blair. She really did like him. Which sucked royally. Because she had sworn to herself over and over again that she would not fall for him. But damn him and his charming ways and his good looks and mesmerizing eyes. It also didn’t help that Brooke actually enjoyed talking to, and, spending time with him. 

But given his history with her two best friends in the city; she wasn’t exactly ready to admit out loud that she may have started to have feelings for him. 

“She’s acting like everything is fine. Which is bullshit. I know Chuck has something on her – but she won’t let me go confront him about it. Not the mention that the sick-Chucker was actually the one to send that letter to Alexander.”

_ “That’s not surprising.”  _ Carter replied.  _ “He’s all about the games and scheming. And he’s still pissed that Blair left him.” _

“-Why would Blair ever stay with him after he cheated on her? It’s his own fault.” 

_ “Yeah, well, she’s forgiven him for a lot worse.”  _

Brooke paused. What else had Chuck done in the past to Blair?  __

_ “I assume you’re going to be at home all day waiting for Blair to call you if she needs you.”  _

She sighed, there was no point in lying. “Yes, and starving to death.” 

Carter chuckled. 

“I actually should go grocery shopping. My refrigerator is almost as depressing as it was back in Tree Hill when I still lived with my parents.” Brooke joked. “But I actually have to do some laundry before I go shopping. Maybe I’ll knock on one of my neighbor’s doors and ask for a banana.” 

_ “Be careful who you ask.”  _ Carter said with a chuckle.  _ “You don’t know what kind of banana they might be willing to give you.”  _

Brooke scoffed at that, trying to suppress a laugh. “Goodbye, Carter.” 

_ “Goodbye, Brooke Davis.”  _

She really did mean to do laundry. But then Haley had texted her and she ended up skyping with her and Nathan for about an hour, talking about what an ass Chuck Bass was. 

_ “Chuck Bass does sound like an ass.”  _ Nathan said, sitting next to Haley at the table. 

_ “Oh god,” _ Brooke had said in annoyance.  _ “Never did I think there would be a day that Nathan Scott ends up telling Dad jokes.”  _

_ “Hey! That wasn’t a dad joke.” _

_ “Nope, it was a bad joke!”  _ Haley said, making herself laugh. 

_ “Ugh, I can’t believe I still talk to you two.”  _ Brooke said, shaking her head as she chuckled quietly. 

They talked about Jamie and how he had sent Brooke a letter, (a class assignment; write a letter to your hero) Brooke totally cried when they told her that, there’s no point in denying it. After they hung up, Brooke decided to buy plane tickets for the three of them to come to New York. She missed them. The little Scott family. 

When her stomach started growling to the point where she was almost sure that her neighbors could actually hear it, someone knocked on her door. Brooke hurried over, worried that it was Blair and she needed her. But when she unlocked the door and opened it – no one was there. She didn’t understand, was she delirious? Was she so hungry that she imagined hearing someone knocking on her door. Brooke looked down.

“I am delirious…” She mumbled as she was looking down at the ground where a banana was placed. 

And then she heard laughing. Brooke stepped out of her apartment and into the hall and saw Carter standing there, four paper bags at his feet. But it wasn’t take-out bags. They were grocery bags. She looked back up at him, a smile forming on her lips. He grinned at her before he picked up the bags in his arms and walked over to where Brooke was now standing. 

“I figured I should probably get you groceries. Just for the simple fact that when I wake up tomorrow, I'd like to have something to eat.”

Brookes mouth opened in amusement, eyebrow kinked up at him. “Pretty cocky. Who says you’re even staying the night?” 

He simply smirked and walked past her and into her apartment. 

Brooke bit down on her lower lip, closing her eyes as she smiled. She had to collect herself before she walked back into her apartment, closing and locking the door behind her after she picked up the banana off the floor. 

“Yaknow,” Brooke said, holding up the banana when Carter unloaded the groceries and began putting them away. He looked over at her, watching her hold the banana in her hand. “I think this was just some clever ploy you came up with after you realized I might just be hungry enough to go to one of the neighbor's houses where they’d offer me a…” She smirked as she looked down at the banana and then him. “Banana.” She used his euphemism. “And I accepted…and you got jealous.” She smirked as she set the banana down on the counter, looking over at him as he stood by the fridge now. 

He looked at her as he licked at his lower lip. Carter set down the carton of eggs on the counter. “Maybe.” He admitted as he moved back a bit, now leaning against the counter next to the fridge. 

Brooke smiled, looking down at her hands. This was getting way too close to something actually happening between them, so she cleared her throat and tried to calm down her racing heart. “So, what’d you get me?” She looked back up at him with a warm smile. 

“The basics. Fruit,” He moved forward and grabbed bananas and grapes out of the big brown bag. “Veggies.” He pulled out a range of vegetables, “Bread. Wheat, white, sour-dough. I didn’t know which you preferred.” He set the three bags of bread down on the counter and Brooke walked over to where he was standing, grabbing the bread off the counter and walked over to her pantry and put them away. 

“Sour-dough.” She answered him.

“Good to know.” She heard Carter chuckle, she turned around to see him pulling more items out of the bags. “And various other foods that I’m keeping a secret from you.” 

“Why?” Brooke said in a playful tone. 

“Because I’m making you breakfast and you are going to go in a different room so when it’s done you’ll be surprised.” 

Brooke smiled at that, hands going to her hips. “Well, I do need to take a shower.” She said as she began to walk over to him, trying to sneak a glance into the bags only to have him pull them away from her. Brookes stuck her tongue out at him before turning her back to him, calling out as she walked to her bedroom, “Try not to burn down my apartment.” 

When she showered, dried off, and changed into something more comfortable, her apartment smelled heavenly. She closed her eyes and inhaled as she walked into the kitchen, a smile on her lips. When she opened her eyes, Carter was standing at the stove, flipping an omelet. There were diced potatoes smothered in spices cooking on the stove in her skillet that had Brookes mouth-watering, and leftover veggies that had been chopped up still sitting on the kitchen counter. When she took a better glance at the omelet, she saw that it was a veggie omelet. 

“-Now, I didn’t know if you were a bacon and sausage kind of girl. So, I didn’t start making them until you came out.” Carter said, not looking back at Brooke but knowing she was there. “And I played it safe with the omelet and made it veggie because when we had stir fry the other day you devoured it so I know you like veggies.” 

Brooke chuckled, moving to stand next to Carter at the stove. “I do. And I also like bacon and sausage as well. But you’ve made more than enough food – unless you’re planning on trying to get me to gain at least twenty pounds just from breakfast.”

Carter laughed at that. “I’ve seen you put away almost an entire pizza by yourself and still maintain your figure. I doubt you even gain weight when you eat.” 

“Oh, I do.” Brooke leaned forward to sniff at the potatoes. “I just do a thousand squats when I’m in my office.” Carter shook his head, and Brooke could see him smiling as he cooked. “You know, you really didn’t have to cook me breakfast – or even buy me groceries.” Brooke said, turning a bit so her hip was against the counter as she looked up at him.  

Carter shrugged before he picked up the pan he was cooking the omelet on and let it slide off onto a plate on the counter. Brooke noticed that there was another omelet right next to it on another plate. He picked up the plate that he had just dropped the omelet on and handed it to Brooke. “Maybe I just wanted an excuse to see you.” He looked down at her. But he wasn’t smiling, and his voice was serious. 

Brooke swallowed hard and took the plate from him, turning a bit so she could scoop up some of the diced potatoes onto her plate. “What, you aren’t sick of me already?” She asked, trying to be playful, but her voice faltered a little. Brooke looked back up at Carter. 

“I don’t think that’s possible.” He said after a long pause. 

Brooke fought the instinct to drop her plate to the ground and grab Carter, bringing him down to her until his mouth was on hers. Instead, she looked down at her food and then back up at him. “I didn’t know you were such a good cook.” 

He smiled, turning a bit to grab his own plate and dished up some potatoes as well. “I wouldn’t say that until you’ve tasted it.” Carter chuckled. “I only started cooking a few years ago. My sponsor recommended getting a hobby that doesn’t involve gambling or betting. So, I started taking cooking classes.” He walked forward and Brooke followed him, but surprisingly he stopped in her dining room, not walking further to her living room. Carter set his plate down and took Brookes, setting hers at the head of the table then pulled her chair out for her. She sat down, a bit in awe and then listened to him continue on as he took a seat at her left. “-I was shit at first. Which wasn’t surprising seeing as the most I ever had to cook for myself or someone else was poptarts or toaster pastries.”

“I love toaster pastries!” Brooke said happily causing Carter to grin at her.  She took a bite of her omelet and moaned, her taste buds going in overdrive at how good it was. “Amazing.” Brooke said after swallowing. 

“I mean, if I knew you liked toaster pastries I would have just got a box of those instead. It was my go-to breakfast to make girls who stayed over through the morning. Well, that or twenty dollars for a cab ride.”

Brooke laughed at that, covering her mouth with her hand so she wouldn’t spill any food from her mouth. “Well,” She said after sobering up a bit and swallowing her food. “At least you paid for their cab fare.”

“-Only the ones who I didn’t make a toaster pastry for.” He took a quick bite of his potatoes before speaking again. “-The ones I fed had to pay their own way.”

Brooke couldn’t help but laugh at that.  She decided to test out the potatoes and discovered they were as amazing as they smelt. Brooke asked him which spices he used; and if he had bought them because she was pretty sure the only spice she had bought since moving to New York was cinnamon. He chuckled and then told her some of the spices he had used, though he didn’t tell her all of the ones he used; saying he needed to keep some secret so she’d keep him around – for the sake of cooking, of course. 

“How’s your sister?” Brooke asked after she finished her meal, pushing it a bit away from her as she sat back in her chair. 

Carter did the same, having finished before she had. “Caroline is Caroline. She doesn’t really like talking about our parents or how she’s feeling. Especially when I’m around. I keep thinking that maybe if I put some distance between us she might start opening up to her therapist.” 

Brooke frowned. “I don’t think that’ll help much.” She gave her two-cents. “You got to keep being there for her. You got to let her know that you’re here for her. Soon enough she’ll feel comfortable to let you in,” She looked down at her hands. “And the therapist.” She quickly added. “Sometimes people have a hard time opening themselves up to someone because they aren’t sure the person is going to stick around.” 

_ Yeah, yeah,  _ it was very obvious that Brooke was talking about herself and her fear of getting into anything with Carter. He terrified her. Because she  _ really  _ liked him. But from what Serena and Blair have told her of their past with him; Carter was quite the flight risk. 

“I’m not going anywhere.” Carters words pulled her to look up at him, his eyes were intense on her. She took in a deep breath. “If that’s what Caroline is worried about.” He said softly. 

A part of her knew he was talking to her, and not about Caroline. But she was still scared. So, she simply nodded her head. “Caroline is lucky to have a brother like you.” She told him, and then smiled as she teased. “Even if you slept with most of her friends in high school.” 

  
  
  


* * *

 

**Brooke Davis: A Freakin’ Genius**

  
  
  


That’s what she decided she would call her memoir. Well, if she ever had one written about her – or wrote it herself, whichever one that was. It didn’t matter, because she was a freakin’ genius. Brooke couldn’t believe she hadn’t thought of it earlier, and she kinda wanted to smack herself for it. But the idea was now in her head and there was no going back. 

Brooke had both Serena and Blair sitting on the other side of her desk while Brooke faced them from her side, a grin on her face. 

“Are you high?” Blair asked, annoyed that they had been sitting here for the last few minutes with Brooke just staring at them smiling. 

“Yes, I am. High on my own brilliance!” Brooke said. She watched as Serena grinned back at her, clearly amused. “Serena Archibald,” She motioned to the blonde. “You have been on my mind for the last few weeks. You, and your body.” 

“-Oh God, is this some sort of proposition to have a three-some with Nate and Serena?” Blair narrowed her eyes. Her tone was serious, but Brooke had come to know Blair sense of humor, and knew when she was teasing. So, Brooke simply stuck her tongue out at her friend. 

“No, though – you would be the least awkward of my married friends to have a threesome with.” Brooke said offhandedly, but Serena and Blair heard and chuckled. 

“Yes, because you haven’t already slept with Serena’s husband. Unlike Haley and Peyton’s husbands.” Blair remarked with a smirk. 

“You are  _ mean. _ ” Brooke laughed. “And you are really going to regret being so mean to me when I tell you my amazing idea.” 

“Tell us!” Serena laughed. 

Brooke smirked before grabbing her sketchbook and handing it over to Serena. She watched as the blonde raised her brow in confusion and then opened it. 

“Oh! That is  _ so  _ cute!” Serena said with big eyes, looking over the sketches. Brooke watched as Blair moved a bit in her chair to see what Serena was talking about, watching as the blonde skim her finger along the sketch. “I would  _ so  _ wear this!” 

“I was hoping you’d say that!” Brooke said cheerfully. “Because once I get it approved by the board; this will be one of Davis’ Enterprises new lines. Maternity.” 

Serena looked up at Brooke in surprise. “Are you serious?” She said happily. 

Brooke nodded her head, still smiling. 

“Oh, I am  _ so  _ glad! Because I’ve been trying to work up the courage to ask you to design some things for me in your spare time. I keep getting bigger and everything I’ve seen on-line for maternity-wear is hideous!” Serena made a face. “But now you’re actually doing a line and I am so happy!” Serena cheered. 

Brooke smiled, but then saw Blair looking down at her hands, trying to look supportive, but she was clearly sad. Brooke took in a deep breath of reassurance before speaking up again, finding the courage to say what she wouldn’t next 

“-I am going to do the line.” Brooke said, her eyes on Blair. “And Blair is going to be my co-designer.” 

Blairs eyes shot up to Brooke. “What?” 

“If you agree, of course.” Brooke smiled. “Look, I know Chuck has something on you that is big enough to take away your company – but he can’t take mine.”

“-Brooke,” Blair tried to stop her.

“No, Blair. You love fashion – it’s in your blood. It’s what you’re passionate about!”

Blair shook her head, looking down at her hands. “I can’t.” 

“-Blair!” Serena said in shock.  “You can’t seriously be turning this down!” She handed Blair the sketch book, “I mean, look at these sketches – the line will be huge! And like Brooke said, Chuck can’t take away her company.” Blair closed her eyes at Serena’s words. Just as Serena was about to say something else; her phone started ringing. She sighed as she looked down at her phone. “-I got to take this. It’s my mom.” The blonde said, standing up and putting her phone to her ear. 

When she finally walked out of the office, Brooke turned her attention back on Blair. 

“What is going on?” She asked. 

“I can’t take the job, Brooke. I’m sorry.” Blair told her. 

“Why?” Brooke said in confusion. Blair wouldn’t meet her eyes. “ _ Why _ ?” She wouldn’t answer. “What does he have on you?” 

Blair finally looked to Brooke. “It’s not something he has on me.” She finally said, her voice sharp. “It’s  _ you. _ ” 

Brooke didn’t understand. What the hell was Blair talking about? “-I don’t,” She shook her head. “He has something on  _ me _ ?” 

“The nightclub opening.” Blair said. 

“What about it?” 

Blair looked at Brooke, as if she was supposed to know what she meant. What about the nightclub opening – nothing bad had even happened…and then it hit her.  _ Carter.  _ Brooke closed her eyes and shook her head. 

“There were cameras hidden in the room.” Blair explained, seeing that Brooke finally understood. “For security purposes. And mostly because Chuck is paranoid…he said he was going to release the footage.”

“-Why? What the hell did I ever do to him?” 

“-Aside from bruising his ego at the club that night? He was pissed that you forgave me for the letter. Chuck thought he could turn you against me and he failed. Bruising his ego even more.” 

But Brooke still didn’t understand. “Blair…” she said softly. “You signed over your company…” Brooke shook her head. “Why?” 

Blair shrugged her shoulders. “Some things are more important to me than my company. Family…and you’ve somehow become part of my family. And I wasn’t going to let him hurt you. I’m done with his games and scheming,  _ yes,  _ that was a key factor in how we fell in love…but I don’t want to be that girl anymore. I want to be Henrys mother. A friend that wouldn’t let her ex-husband try and destroy her best friend’s reputation. Even though she’s  _ stupid  _ to hook up with someone in the back of a club, and even more stupid because that person was  _ Carter Baizen.  _ Seriously, Brooke? Of all the eligible bachelors in New York – Carter Baizen is the one you choose to have sex with?”

“-Technically, I didn’t have sex with him.” Brooke tried to argue.

“Yes, I know that. I saw the video.” Blair crossed her arms over her chest. 

Brooke sighed, standing up and walking over to where Blair was sitting. “You shouldn’t have given up your company, Blair. I could have handled it. You do remember that my boobs are now in gif form, thanks to you.” She playfully glared. 

“That’s exactly why I couldn’t let him release it!” Blair said, voice upset. “It’s bad enough that everyone’s seen your boobs,  _ thanks to me, _ ” She repeated Brooke, causing her to frown. “I’m not going to have another private moment of yours broadcast all over the internet.”

Brooke occupied the seat Serena had been using, sitting next to Blair and turned the chair so she was facing the ex-owner of Waldorf Designs. “But it was your dream.” 

“It was.” Blair agreed. “But not anymore. It hasn’t been my dream for a long time…when Chuck paid my dowry to the Grimaldi’s…I always felt like I had to prove to him that he did the right thing. He had paid it so I could keep Waldorf Designs and every single year since it’s just…it’s not how I wanted to run it. I always ran it with Chuck in the back of my mind and what he had done for me. And when we got divorced…running the company felt like he still had his grip on me. In a way, I didn’t just save you…I saved me. There’s nothing left he can hold over my head…aside from my son.” 

“Okay, well then why can’t you come work for me then? You can be one of the designers. Hell, I’d fire my witch of a mother and make you CEO if I didn’t think she’d sue me.” Brooke smirked. 

“I can’t, not while Chuck still has the video.” 

“Blair,” Brooke tried to argue.

“-Just let me do this, okay?” Blair pleaded. She then looked over her shoulder to the door where Serena had walked out of earlier. “-Also…you haven’t told Serena about hooking up with Carter for a reason. I really doubt you’d want it blasted all over the internet. I mean, you denied anything was going on between you two.” 

Brooke huffed, crossing her legs in the chair Serena had been sitting in. “Well, at that point Carter and I had only had the backroom hookup. And I was pissed at him because he disappeared for a month with no word after I had drunkenly texted him and he had to take care of my drunk ass…he bruised my ego. So, nothing was happening.” 

“And now?” Blair questioned. 

“Now…” Brooke shrugged. “I don’t know. We hang out but nothing sexual goes on between us. I guess we’re just friends but…sometimes,” she shrugged. “it doesn’t feel very much like friendship.” Brooke admitted. “I’m just…cautious…I guess.” 

Blair opened her mouth to speak, but Serena walked in the room. The discussion ended. As did the discussion of Blair joining her team. Instead, Brooke focused on the next plan on making the maternity line. She needed a face for it. 

And when Serena was ready to announce her pregnancy, she would be the face of Baby Bump by B. Davis. 

It was just another thing to get her mother on board with the line. 

_ It’s great PR.  _

 

* * *

 

“Have you told him?”

Brooke looked up from her cup of coffee and narrowed her eyes. It was one of the last few days left of warm weather, so she decided that they should sit outside the café at a small little table for three. Blair had brought Henry with her; with all her free time, she was able to have her son around more. Which seemed to be making Blair very happy. Which made Brooke happy. What didn’t make Brooke happy was the fact that Blair kept bringing up Carter and their ‘non-relationship’ or whatever they had. 

“No.” Brooke said before bringing the cup back to her mouth and taking a sip. 

“-Why?” Blair countered back. 

“Be _ cause _ , if you’re not going to let me do anything about it – I’m not going to bother telling him.” 

Blair rolled her eyes at that, looking over at Henry who was picking at his pastry. She smiled but then turned her attention back to Brooke. 

“Hey, buddy, how are you liking school?” Brooke asked Henry, who simply shrugged. He didn’t talk much – but on the rare days he did talk to Brooke, he did not stop. Henry was shy; whereas Jamie was very outgoing. But then again, Jamie considered her family.  

Brooke frowned, she really did miss Jamie. 

Haley, Nathan, and Jamie had come over last week just for the weekend. Not nearly long enough for Brooke. And as much as she missed them…she wasn’t going to lie and say she didn’t mind having Carter back in her bed every night. 

Which to Blair was just;  _ completely dysfunction.  _

_ “He sleeps over every night…but you don’t have sex?”  _

_ “Exactly.” _

_ “And he’s been doing this for how many weeks now?”  _

_ “Around…five?” _

_ “Brooke!” _

_ “Blair!”  _

_ “This whole thing is completely dysfunction.”  _ Blair would comment.  _ “You clearly like him, Brooke. And Carter Baizen is definitely not the type of guy who just has sleepovers with someone for five weeks when there is no sex involved.”  _

“-I think you should tell him.” Blair picked up her own cup of coffee and took a sip. 

“What is the point? It’ll only upset him and he does not need anything upsetting him right now.” Brooke replied. Blair raised her brow at that but Brooke simply waved her off, telling her not to ask. 

Caroline was not doing well. She was keeping up with her sobriety, but she was not handling the miscarriage very well. 

After a few therapy sessions with Carter, it finally all came out. 

Losing her unborn child was the reason she was having such a hard time. Caroline felt like a failure, Carter had even told Brooke that his sister had referred to herself as a murderer.  

His voice was so full of pain, each word seemed like a desperate cry for help. Brooke moved closer to him and pulled him into her arms, letting him hold her as tight as he needed to. It was the first time Brooke didn’t just  _ want  _ to kiss Carter. It was the first time she felt like she  _ needed  _ to kiss him. And not just because he was upset…but because Brooke felt like if she didn’t move forward and press her lips to his in that moment; she’d regret it for the rest of her life. 

Her fear got the best of her.

She didn’t kiss him.

And then Nathan, Haley, and Jamie arrived in New York and Carter left. 

When he came back, everything went back to normal. As if Brooke hadn’t been so close to kissing him before pulling away last minute and pressing her hand to his chest, closing her eyes and trying to push away the fear. But she couldn’t. It was too strong.  

But he came back…that had to mean something, right? 

“Besides, he doesn’t need to be dragged into my drama.” Brooke said, a finger pressed to her temple hard as she rubbed. “Look, I know I said I didn’t care earlier if it came out – but a scandal like that could kill my company. And then I would end up dead because my mother would come to New York and murder me.” 

“I’d be sad.” Brooke and Blair both looked over at Henry who had just spoken. She raised her brow at him, Henry continued to pick at his pastry. “If you were dead.”

Brooke had to look over at Blair with a smile, her hand over her heart. She then looked back over to Henry “Thank you, Henry.”

He simply nodded and finally took a bite of his pastry. 

“Are you nervous for tomorrow?” Blair asked, sipping at her coffee. 

“For what? Presenting a new line to my board members? Or for the fact that Bitchtoria is going to be there too and will probably try and put me and the line down every other chance she can get?”

“Both?” Blair chuckled. 

“Yes, I am. It  _ would  _ help if I had an awesome co-designer to present the board with who I know has my back and people love.” Brooke narrowed her eyes at Blair. 

Blair rolled her eyes. “-People don’t love me.”

“I do, mama.” Henry replied. 

“Oh my goodness, Henry! I do too!” Brooke said to Henry, earning a smile from him.  

“Honestly,” Blair said. “How are you feeling about tomorrow?” 

Brooke simply shrugged. “Terrified.” She answered truthfully. “This is the first pitch I’ve done on my own since…ever. My mom usually took the lead while meeting with the board members. The only thing I have going for me is that Serena is going to be the face of the line. Except I can’t tell them she’s going to be the face of the line. I kind of wish she’d just show up after the pitch and be like,  _ surprise,”  _ Brooke made a motion of lifting up her shirt. _ “- _ so I can tell them. But she doesn’t want it to come out yet.”

“-She’s going to need to do it soon – because she’s getting bigger every day. And yes, she does have the talent of pulling off the Mary-Kate and Ashley homeless chic look, but I don’t think I need to remind you that it’s not 2005 anymore. Thank God.” 

Brooke had to give into a laugh at that. 

“You’re going to do great, Brooke.” Blair said in a serious tone this time. “Besides, you don’t have a competing line going against you anymore.” 

She narrowed her eyes at Blair. Her eyes then softened when Blair smiled at her. “Thank you.” Brooke finally said. “I don’t think I’ve said that yet. You really saved me, my already not so clean reputation, my company, and my dignity.” Brooke reached across the table and grabbed Blairs hand, giving it a squeeze. “I wish there was a way I could make it up to you. I’m really grateful for you, B.” 

Blair smiled at her words. “Yeah, well. You’re always talking about karma. I figured with how I used to be…I could use all the good karma I can get.” 

“Well, send some of that good karma my way. I’m going to need some to survive tomorrow’s meeting.” 

 

* * *

  
  


The meeting went amazing – minus Victoria’s downright refusal of the line. It wasn’t until Serena showed up and told them that she was going to be the face of the line. That had changed Victoria’s mind about the new line. She was all on board when she found out the it-girl of the Upper East Side would be their model and face. 

_ “She’s already one of the most famous socialites out there! And when the press finds out she’s pregnant – Brooke, this line is going to get SO much publicity you are going to be rolling around your bed in money!”  _

Serena would be announcing her pregnancy in next week’s B. Davis magazine wearing her favorite design from the maternity line on the cover. Serena had already picked a few of her favorite designs and everyone was working their asses off to get them ready on time. 

Serena had also, cleverly, drew up some legal papers and had everyone involved with the line who knew she was pregnant under a strict gag order. If anyone spoke of her pregnancy or the line before the magazine hit stands at 12:01 AM next Monday, they would be fired and faced with a lawsuit. Very smart, Mrs. Archibald.  

Victoria had sent Brooke home, because apparently, she was scaring all the interns with how stressed she was getting. But she couldn’t help it. Now that this whole thing was a reality and not just a dream – her nerves started on high. After she had thrown fabric at an intern for the fourth time, Victoria had told her that maybe she should take the rest of the day off.

Brooke had refused, but then Victoria pointed at the young intern Brooke had been throwing fabric at. She was crying. 

So, she left. Feeling guilty and very embarrassed. 

Brooke got home around noon, and called Carter and left a voice message telling him that she got sent home by her mother. But that the meeting went well. Brooke also told him that she was going to let him take a break from cooking for her and she would impress him with her culinary skills (which meant she’d just order take-out ahead of time and throw out the evidence before he got to her place.)

Brooke knew that Carter would be going to therapy with Caroline today, she also knew that he’d probably be upset once he finally got to her apartment. It was hard for him; probably a lot harder for Caroline. But he felt so helpless; like there was nothing he could do.

_ “Give her time, Carter. She’ll get there.”  _

Twenty minutes after she had gotten home, there was a knocking at her door. She quirked her brow up in confusion – who the hell was at her door? 

“Nathan!” Brooke said happily when she opened the door to see her childhood best friend in her hallway smiling at her. She moved forward, wrapping her arms around his shoulders with a happy grin as he hugged her back. “What the hell are you doing here?” She asked once she pulled away, hands still resting on his arms. 

His smile faded at her words. “I uh, I actually need your advice.” 

Brooke nodded, hands falling from his arms as she motioned for him to follow her inside. “Not that I’m not thrilled that you’re here – but there is this thing called a phone. Skype as well. Though, you usually just lurk in the background and make bad dad jokes.” Brooke said once they were inside her apartment. 

He chuckled, but it didn’t sound right. Nathan followed Brooke into her living room and took a seat on her couch and then looked over at her. 

“What’s up, buddy?” 

He sighed, shaking his head. “I need you to promise to keep this between us, okay?” He made her promise.

Brooke gave him a look. “-Please tell me you’re not cheating on Haley and went all Dan Scott and got the girl knocked up? Because I  _ will  _ slap you. And also, I wouldn’t be able to promise to not tell Haley. And afterwards; we’d take turns slapping you.”

Nathan gave her a sad smile. “It’s nothing like that.” He admitted. “Last week I went to the doctors,” Nathan said after a moment.

Brooke felt her stomach drop. Nothing good could come from this – no one flew across the country to tell their friends that they went to the doctors and it was good news they were sharing. She reached over and took his hand in hers. “Are you okay?” 

He shook his head. “It’s not life and death…but,” His head dropped. “I can’t play basketball anymore.” 

“Nathan,” Brooke spoke softly, squeezing his hand. 

“You remember that fall I took last season?” 

Brooke nodded her head. She had been at the game. Haley had been terrified. Luckily, that had been one of the last games of the season so he was put in rehab quickly to try and build his strength back up.

“Doc said I herniated a disc in my back.”

“-What?” Brooke said in surprise. “Haley never said anything!” 

“Hales didn’t even know. I told her that everything was fine. Tried rehab this whole time but…the doctors said I can’t play in the NBA anymore, Brooke. I can’t play basketball.” Nathan closed his eyes and Brooke moved forward, wrapping an arm around his and pulling him into a hug.

“It’s going to be okay, Nathan.” She rubbed his back softly, almost scared to touch him in the wrong place. Brooke didn’t want to make things worse. 

“I don’t know what I’m going to do.” He whispered, she could feel her shoulder dampen. Brooke felt tears fill her eyes. She hadn’t seen Nathan cry in such a long time. Not since Jamie was born. But those were happy tears. 

Brooke pulled away from him, her hand going to his face, thumb wiping away a tear. “You don’t have anything to worry about, Nathan. You have a beautiful wife and son who loves you so much and will always be here for you. No matter what you end up doing in life. And I’ll be here too…but you got to tell Hales about this.” 

“I don’t want to disappoint her.”

“You are  _ not  _ going to disappoint her, Nathan. I mean, if you act like a complete and total jackass about it and grow your hair out and have a weird beard she might be slightly disappointed in you.” Brooke joked and Nathan gave her a smile. “This isn’t the end of your life, this is just the end of your,”

“-Dreams?” Nathan finished. 

But that was not what Brooke was going to say. “Do you want to be slapped? You have Haley and Jamie. Your basketball career may be over – but you still have them. And that’s the dream. To have a family who loves you more than anything.” She pressed her hand to his shoulder. He nodded, smiling a bit. “But, if you are really worried about not having a career – I can totally hire you as one of my models for Clothes 4 Bro’s, boy-toy.” She smirked. 

Nathan chuckled. 

“And  _ then _ you would have to move to New York and bring Haley and my  _ favorite  _ Godson with you!” Brooke joked. Nathan laughed. “-I’m serious! It’d be perfect!” 

“If I get desperate, I might take you up on that offer.” 

Brooke smiled at him. She then frowned. “Where does Haley think you are right now?” 

“Visiting Clay in Jersey.” 

Brooke made a face, not knowing who the hell Nathan was talking about. 

“Clay.” Nathan said again. “Clay Evans. Brooke, he’s my manager. I set you up with him when you first moved to New York!” 

“ _ Oh,”  _ Brooke drew it out. “Yeah. I forgot about him.”

Nathan laughed. “Not that memorable in bed?” 

“Ha-ha!” Brooke stuck her tongue out at him “I never slept with him, jerk!” She playfully glared. “How are you going to break it to him?”  

“He already knows. Well, he doesn’t know how bad it’s gotten. But he was with me when I got the news after the fall. I have to go break the news to him now that he’s lost out on a client. I was actually hoping you’d come with me and maybe sleep with him afterwards so he won’t be so mad.” 

Brooke scoffed out a laugh at that. “Yeah, sorry. You’re on your own, buddy.”  She continued to chuckle. Her features softened. “But…I really do think you should talk to your wife first. Let her in, Nathan. I know the Scott boys have trouble with that…but you’ve always been smarter than Lucas.” She winked.

“And better looking.” Nathan added.  

Brooke laughed, shaking her head. “Yes, but don’t tell Lucas I said that. I’ll deny it.” Nathan grinned at that. “When are you headed to Jersey?” 

Nathan shrugged. “Whenever. Clay said any time after five is good.” 

“Well then, friend – you are going to get a tour of New York City by its prettiest/most famous fashion designer!” 

“Cool. I mean, I figured you would have shown me around – but I’m cool with your friend Blair showing me around instead.” 

Brooke swatted at his chest and then stood up. “I take it back. Lucas is the better-looking Scott brother.” She held out her hand for him to grab. “Come on, dude. Let me wine and dine you.” 

“You paying? Because I am losing my source of income and will be poor soon enough. I’m actually glad you sold those floor seats for the Knicks and put it in Jamie’s college fund because that’s the only way he’ll be able to afford to go now.” 

“Well, luckily; Jamie is as smart as his mother and will probably get a full-ride scholarship to Harvard or some other Ivy League. And if that doesn’t happen, his Godmother is rich as Hell. So yes, Nathan. I will be paying.” 

He grinned and grabbed a hold of her hand, laughing as she tried to pull him up on her own before she finally huffed, stomping her foot down and Nathan stood up on his own. 

They walked out of Brookes apartment and down the hall towards the elevator. “You do realize that I was here a couple weekends ago. And that I have been to New York before today.” 

“Keep talking like that and you’ll end up paying for you own meal.” Brooke said as she looped her arm with his. Nathan laughed and shook his head.

She knew that it was under horrible circumstances that he was in New York. But she was really glad that he was here. She missed Nathan. Brooke missed all her friends. Peyton and Lucas hadn’t even come back to the States since they moved to London. 

And even though she loved Blair, Serena, and Nate. She did miss her best friends that she grew up with. 

She’d never leave New York now. Not after getting so close to Blair, Serena and Nate. And Carter…man, she really should have kissed him the other day. 

“I’m actually glad you’re here. I need some advice too.” Brooke said as they stepped into the elevator. 

Nathan cocked his head at her. “Let me guess; guy advice?”

She nodded. “Guy advice.”

“Oh boy.” Nathan said as the elevator doors closed. 

 

* * *

  
  


Nathan had given her really good advice in regards to Carter. 

_ “I know you, Brooke. We’ve been friends for a very long time. So, I know that you’ve been hurt in the past and you’re scared to open your heart to someone again. But I also know that the guys you’ve been with in the past are complete idiots. And yes, I am aware that my brother was one of those guys. But let’s face it; we both know Lucas was an idiot. But from what you’ve told me about this guy…he’s definitely not Lucas. Or Chase, or Mr. Chavez, or Felix, or that weird producer guy you dated in LA for a few months that high-fived really weird.” _

_ Brooke had to chuckle at that.  _

_ “He seems to care about you. He’s been in your bed for the past few weeks and hasn’t made a move. So, either he’s gay or he seems like a decent enough guy.”  _

_ “Trust me, he’s definitely not gay.”  _

_ Nathan shook his head and rolled his eyes. “Backroom hook up? Really? Are you in high school again, Brooke?” _

_ “-Well, it wasn’t like it was a janitor closet!”   _

_ “My point is: he likes you. And you like him too. You can’t guard your heart forever. I think this is the first time I’ve ever heard you say that you’re comfortable to be yourself with a guy. That you’ve never felt judged or inferior to him. And again, need I remind you that he’s been in your bed for the last five weeks. He’s into you, Brooke. Stop being scared, go for it. And if you don’t, I’m going to be pissed. Because you were the number one supporter of mine and Haley’s relationship. There was a reason you were Haley’s maid of honor and a reason we decided together that you’d be Jamie’s godmother.  Because if it wasn’t for everything you did for us – we probably wouldn’t have made it.”  _

_ Brooke shook her head. “I don’t believe that. People that are meant to be together,” _

_ “-Always find their way in the end. I know. I think I’ve heard you say that a time or two.” He teased. “Maybe take your own advice for once.”  _

So, she had planned on taking his advice.

_ Well, her advice. _

But Carter never showed up to her place.

He didn’t even answer her calls or texts. 

Brooke decided to stop by his place. 

She had never been there before; but she knew his address from when she had looked him up after her talk with Blair. 

Brooke didn’t really know what she was going to say when she showed up – maybe just blurt out how she really felt about him after hitting him upside the head for not calling her back to let her know that he was alive. It terrified her, but she needed to be brave. 

Brooke stood in front of his apartment door and took in a deep breath before she felt brave enough to knock and waited for him to answer. 

When he finally did answer, he looked surprised to see her on the other side of the door. Brooke simply walked past him and into his apartment. She turned and faced him when she heard him close the door. 

“-How did you,”

“I could say I called your assistant to get the information but I know you don’t have an assistant, or you do and you just haven’t told me, which is fine – I’m sorry, I ramble.” She shook her head. “When I looked you up and then accused you of being after my money, I got your address.” Brooke looked him over and tried to keep her heart steady. God, he was handsome. Shirtless and bed head yet still a total fox. 

“Okay,” he said slowly. “Why are you here?” 

“I,” Brooke didn’t understand. “You didn’t show up last night and when I called and texted you, you didn’t answer. I thought I’d stop by to make sure you were okay? Are you?” 

Carter looked down and shook his head. “Yeah, I’m great, Brooke.” He said bitterly before he walked further into his apartment. 

Brooke followed after him. “You don’t sound great. You sound pissed off. Mostly at me.” 

Carter turned around and Brooke almost ran into him from the speed she was following after him. “Go home, Brooke.” 

“No. What the hell is your problem, Carter?” Brooke demanded answers. “Why are you acting like such an ass?”

“I did go to your apartment yesterday. I saw you in the hallway, actually.” 

Brooke made a confused face. 

“You seemed pretty occupied.” 

“Wait, are you talking about Na,”

Her words fell dead when someone walked up behind Carter. A woman, blonde, wearing one of his button up dress shirts and nothing else. Brooke had to take in a breath, feeling as though someone had literally knocked the wind out of her. 

“You coming back to bed, baby?” The woman purred as she moved her arms around Carter from behind him, moving up a bit to nibble at his neck. 

Brooke locked her jaw and began to nod, she closed her eyes to try and stop the tears from coming. When she opened them again, her eyes were hard and cold, trying to not feel any emotion whatsoever. 

“-He’s all yours.” She said sourly before turning around and heading through the apartment. She turned though, looking back at Carter. “-For the record; the guy you saw with me in the hallway was Nathan. I’m pretty sure you’ve heard me talk about him. He’s married to my best friend, he is also one of my best friends as well. And the father of my Godson. I don’t know if I need to remind you of that from all the times I’ve talked about them while you’ve been at my place for the last five weeks – in MY bed.” Brooke had let her anger get the best of her. “I’m sure you’ve heard the saying about making assumptions.” She repeated what he had said to her after she accused him of trying to get close to her for her money. 

“-Brooke,” Carter started walking forward. But Brooke walked out of the apartment, slamming the door behind her hard and stormed down the hall to the elevator. “-Brooke!” She heard Carter shout while she was in the elevator just as the doors shut closed. 

There, she finally let the tears fall. 

Nathan was wrong.

He was just as stupid as all the other guys she’d cared for in her past. 

Now she knew better. 

 


	6. I Have Questions

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> No betareader. Sorry if things get sloppy.

* * *

 

 

Monday had finally come.

As did the announcement of her maternity line, but Serena’s pregnancy announcement seemed to be the biggest topic. They had busted their asses to get everything ready, making the clothes fast, but well enough that Brooke didn’t have to fire anyone. The photoshoot was done by Haley’s older sister Quinn who was in town for an exhibit for some of the photos she had taken while down in Africa. Nathan was back in Seattle, Haley now knew he would no longer be in the NBA anymore, or play basketball again. Haley had taken the news surprisingly well, her only concern was with Nathan and his happiness, worried that without basketball – there’d be a hole in him. Brooke reminded Haley that the only thing that truly matters to Nathan were she and Jamie. 

It had been one hell of a week. 

A week where she spent most of her day in the office, and then snuck out and stayed with Nate and Serena at their place. 

Brooke knew that Carter would show up at her place. That’s why she sent Victoria to grab a few of her clothes for her while she was staying with Nate and Serena, as well as her laptop and a few other things she’d need to work at night. Really, anything she’d need to get through the week so she wouldn’t run into Carter. 

_ “There was a young man sitting outside your apartment door today. And if I’m not mistaken, it’s the young man that you told security not to let into the building. Do you have a stalker, Brooke?”  _

_ “No.”  _ Brooke said as she sketched. The only time Brooke wasn’t imagining Carter having sex with the blonde bimbo was while she was in the middle of sketching a new design for the maternity line. 

It was the only thing she could focus on right now.    


She had even passed the torch to Alexander to be lead designer on Clothes 4 Bro’s so she could spend more time working on a line she actually cared about. And not a line her mother had talked her into creating. 

Brooke had come up with the maternity line on her own, she had done it herself and presented it to the board by herself. Minus Carter helping with the business aspect. But she refused to even think about him right now. 

_ “You sound upset.”  _

_ “Well, you should be happy then. Because I always end up creating genius designs or an entire empire when I’m upset, or angry, or,” _

_ “-Heartbroken?”  _

Brooke had looked up at Victoria after she spoke, glaring at her mother. 

_ “He seemed upset too, if that helps.”  _

_ “No, mother. It doesn’t help. What would help is if he got mauled by dogs or hit by a bus!”  _ She said angrily as she continued to sketch, pressing down hard on the pad of paper with her sketching pen. 

_ “I’m assuming he’s the reason you’re staying with our newest face of Davis Enterprises?”  _

Brooke didn’t answer. Victoria didn’t push. 

_ “Whatever. As long as it doesn’t affect your work.”  _

And then she left. 

Brooke didn’t tell Serena and Nate why she was staying with them – but Blair knew. 

Brooke had wanted to stay with Blair, but she knew Carter would go there to talk to her. She hoped he wasn’t dumb enough to actually go to Nate and Serena’s to talk to her. And it seemed like she was right. 

“Are you okay?” Serena asked, sitting down on the couch next to Brooke. 

“I’m fine.” Brooke lied, forcing a smile. 

“I have to ask you a question.” Serena said, shifting on the couch so her body was facing Brooke. Brooke smiled when she saw the bump and had to stop herself from reaching out and rubbing Serena’s growing belly. Mostly because Serena sounded serious. “And I want you to be honest with me. No matter what.” 

Brooke huffed but nodded her head, setting her laptop down on the coffee table, pulling her feet up onto the couch and under her bum, facing Serena now. 

“You and Carter have been seeing each other, haven’t you?” 

Brooke sighed, closing her eyes. “We weren’t  _ seeing  _ each other. We were…hanging out. No sex.” She finally admitted.

“But you have feelings for him?”

“ _ Had _ .” Brooke corrected her. “They all disappeared the moment I showed up to his place and some skank came out of his room.” 

Serena frowned at her words. “I’m sorry.” 

“I’m fine.” Brooke lied again. “I should have been more cautious with him. And listened when people told me he was a selfish prick, but I was  _ stupid  _ like always _ , _ ”

“-You are not stupid, Brooke.” Serena interrupted her. “You’re not. Carter is just an asshole.”

Brooke shook her head, disagreeing with her. “He’s not. Or, at least he wasn’t. Up until he saw my friend Nathan and I together and got weirdly pissed off about it,”

Serena gave her an odd look, not understanding why Carter would get mad. “Nathan; Haley’s husband.” She had to have Brooke clarify. 

“Yup.” 

Serena rolled her eyes. “He is dumb.” 

Brooke didn’t say anything, just looked down at her hands. 

“Did he know that it was Nathan?” 

“Not at first. But he sure knows now.” Brooke looked back up at Serena. “I told him right after storming out of his apartment and slamming the door shut so hard I think I broke the door frame.” She admitted with a little smile. 

Serena laughed at that. “Well, he deserves a broken door frame.” 

“He deserves a broken nose.” 

Serena gave her a sad frown. “Are you going to be okay here by yourself?” She asked. “I can cancel my lunch.” 

“No way. You have to go. And name-drop my maternity line every other question during the interview.” Brooke smirked causing Serena to laugh again. 

“-You do realize that you need to name it eventually for me to be able to name-drop it.” Serena reminded Brooke. 

The maternity line had still yet to be named. Victoria came to her with a few ideas, but Brooke turned them all down. 

“-Yeah, yeah. Don’t remind me.” Brooke waved her off. “Until then continue referring to it as Davis Enterprises Maternity Line. I’ll come up with something eventually.” 

“Good. Just try to come up with it before this baby pops out.” Serena said as she rubbed her belly affectionately. 

“Yay!” Brooke said with fake enthusiasm.  “I have five months to come up with a name.” Her tone was dry.

Serena smiled before she got up and grabbed her purse off the table. Brooke smiled as she looked at the outfit Serena was wearing from the line. It had been the blondes favorite; Serena had even set it aside from the photoshoot so she could bring it home. Brooke, of course, had helped her, simply saying the outfit must have gotten misplaced and that she had luckily thought ahead and brought back-up outfits. 

“You sure you’ll be okay?” Serena asked yet again and Brooke had to laugh.

“Yes! Now go!” She shooed her away. But when Serena got to the door, Brooke called out for her. “How did you know?” Brooke asked. “About me and Carter.”

Serena smiled, biting down on her lip in amusement. “When we went to Blairs after finding out she signed Waldorf Designs to Chuck. I saw you walking away from him in the Lobby of your apartment. I mean, it could have been a coincidence. Maybe he was there for someone else. But then I saw the pizza box.” 

“Pizza box?” Brooke said in confusion.

“Grimaldi’s. Carter used to go on and on about that place. Only took me once. He said it was the best pizza in New York. I may have disagreed with him.” 

Brooke had to chuckle at that. 

“So, then it was obvious.”

Brooke frowned. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you. I didn’t want it to be weird. I mean, we weren’t together but…I did like him. And I thought maybe he liked me too.” Brooke shrugged, trying to brush her feelings away. “But it doesn’t matter anymore. He made his bed with that skank in it – and now he has to lie on it.” 

“Well, for the record; I think you deserve a lot better than Carter. And I think he knew that too.” 

Brooke didn’t say anything, just gave her a forced smile and watched her leave the apartment, hearing the click of the lock once Serena had shut the door behind her. 

She hated the fact that even while she was so pissed and hurt by Carter, she still felt the need to defend him to Serena and Blair. 

Serena was wrong. 

She was  _ really  _ stupid. 

The painful ache in her heart was proof of that.

 

* * *

 

“Did you hear anything I just said?” Haley complained. Brooke finally tore her eyes away from the open window on her laptop and looked back at the little box that showed Haley’s face in the corner. 

“-Yes, you were talking about Jamie.” Brooke guessed.

Haley laughed at that. “Nice try.”

Brooke bit down on her lower lip to muffle her chuckle. “I’m sorry,” She apologized as her eyes drifted back to the other window open on her laptop. 

“What are you even doing?” 

“Oh, you know – looking for a new place to live.” Brooke said, eyes still on the real-estate page with listings in Manhattan.  

“-You’re leaving New York?!” Haley said in an almost panicked tone. 

“Tone it down, drama-mama. I’m not leaving New York.” Brooke said with a chuckle. “I’m just looking for a new place.”

Haley sighed, “Oh. Wait – why are you looking for a new place? You’ve barely been living in your apartment for a year.”

“I just don’t want to live there anymore.” Brooke said, avoiding looking at the corner of the screen where the box of Haley’s face was placed. She didn’t even need to be looking at it to know she was making a face. “Stop with the face.”

“You aren’t even looking at me.” Haley called her out. “You’re too busy looking for a new place to live because you are trying so hard to avoid Carter that you’re willing to break your lease and waste a ton of money to buy a new place.”  

Brooke looked at the little box in the corner of the screen. “Excuse me – I happen to be  _ very  _ wealthy. I can afford to break my lease and buy a new place. I can buy ten new places if I want to!” Haley laughed at that. “Besides, the place I’m looking at is amazing. It even has a private parking spot for me.” She said with excitement. 

“-You don’t even have a car!” Haley reminded Brooke, amused by her friend. 

“Only because I didn’t have a parking spot at my soon to be old apartment.”

“You are insane!” Haley laughed. 

“In addition to my private parking spot, I will also have five bedrooms, along with en-suite bathrooms for each room, and my own laundry room!”  

“First off; you haven’t done your laundry yourself since you were living at Karen’s.”

Brooke opened her mouth to protest but Haley stopped her and started talking again.

“-Secondly; why would you want a place with five bedrooms?”

“And,”

“-And five en-suite bathrooms, yes, I heard you.” Haley said with a roll of her eyes. 

Brooke shrugged. “It’s always nice to have extra rooms.” She tried to justify. “I mean, I can turn one into an office. Another into my own personal design area where I can make clothes at home. And I’ll make another room into one for Jamie when you guys come to visit or something and the last room can be a guest bedroom for you and Nathan.”

Haley bit down on her lip and Brooke quirked her brow up. “Actually, we’re not going to be needing a guest room to stay in.” She admitted. “Nathan and I talked a few days ago and we decided we’re going to be selling our Seattle home. We’re moving. I turned in my job resignation yesterday.” 

“-I swear to God, Haley James-Scott, I will climb through this computer screen Samara style and kill you if you say you, Nathan, and Jamie are moving to London.” 

Haley laughed, shaking her head. “We’re not moving to London. But we will be closer to you.” 

Brooke made a face. “You’re moving back to Tree Hill, aren’t you?” 

“Nope.” Haley told her. “That’s still a little too far away from you.” She said with a big smile. “I’m thinking maybe we should limit the travel time to say…an hour and forty some minutes give or take. What do you say?” 

Brooke opened her mouth as she grinned. “I say that would be a dream come true!” 

Haley laughed. “Clay offered Nathan a job as an agent. He already set us up at house in New Jersey. We’ve already started shipping our stuff over.” 

Brooke clapped her hands in excitement. “Haley! I can’t believe it!” She cheered happily. “If you’re playing a joke on me right now I’m going to be really pissed off!” Brooke couldn’t help it, tears filled her eyes. 

“I am not joking, Brooke Davis. We’re moving to New Jersey. I have a job interview in three weeks.”

“-Screw New Jersey! Move in to my new penthouse I’m going to buy! I’ll even let you use my master bathroom. It has heated floors, a white stone soaking tub, a steam shower!” Brooke clicked on the link and shared it with Haley, sending her the webpage she was looking at. 

“Jeez, where is this? Trump Towers?” Haley commented. 

Brooke made a disgusted face. “Do you see any gold in this penthouse? No. You know why? Because it’s classy.”

“I heard he had the penthouse modeled after the Palace of Versailles.” 

“Whatever,” Brooke changed the subject back to her would-be penthouse. “There’s a terrace off the kitchen, and living room. And direct private elevator access. Which means the only people who can get into my new place would be people who have an actual code to get in.” Brooke read more about the place. “-Actually, I think it’s one of those places that uses fingerprint readers. Even better.” 

“The lengths you’ll go to avoid someone, Brooke.” 

“-Keep talking like that and I won’t have your fingerprint scanned into my new private elevator.” Brooke smirked. She turned her head when she heard the door unlocking and then opening. She smiled when she saw Nate walk through the door. “Hey Hales, I got to go. Nate’s back.” 

“You know it’s still weird when I hear you call someone else Nate.” Haley mumbled, but Nate heard and chuckled as he walked towards where Brooke was sitting on the couch, standing behind it and giving a little wave to Haley. 

“I could always have her start calling me  _ Nathaniel.  _ But that’s usually reserved for my family.” He said with a wink, squeezing Brookes shoulder before he walked away from the couch and out of view from the laptop. 

Brooke held back a laugh when she watched Haley mouth the word ‘WOW’ and then ‘SO HOT’. The brunette then pointed to her ring finger, reminding Haley that not only was Nate was married, but she was as well. 

“Send  _ Nathan  _ my love.” Brooke teased and Haley rolled her eyes. “I’ll talk to you later, Hales.” Brooke said. 

“Talk to you later, Brooke.  _ Bye Nathaniel!”  _ Haley said in a snooty rich person's voice before the box went black and Haley’s face disappeared. 

Brooke closed the laptop and then looked over her shoulder at Nate who was laughing. “Don’t worry, I won’t tell her that your middle name is Fitzwilliam.”

He laughed harder. “Yeah, I don’t know how much more snooty her voice can get while talking about me to you.” 

Brooke chuckled, getting up and off the couch. “Well, don’t ever tell her or Nathan I’m telling you this, but Nathan’s middle name is Royal.”

“Royal?” Nate said in surprise. 

“His Grandfather was named Royal.” She smiled, moving into the kitchen where Nate was now standing. “What are you doing home so early?” She asked. 

Nate shrugged and Brooke narrowed her eyes at him. “I just figured I’d have lunch here.”

“M-hm.” Brooke said, not buying it. 

Nate turned to look at Brooke, “I can have lunch at home.”

“Serena sent you to check on me.” 

Nate tried to act offended, or maybe confused – she couldn’t really tell, all she knew was that the face he was giving her gave away that  _ yes,  _ Serena had called and asked him to check up on her. Brooke raised a brow at him and put her hands on her hips, waiting for him to tell the truth. 

He sighed, “Yes.” 

“Ha!” Brooke said in victory. Nate shook his head and chuckled. “Look, I love you guys for putting me up here, but you don’t have to worry about me all the time, okay? I’m fine.” 

Nate gave her a skeptical look. 

Brooke rolled her eyes, knowing that Serena must have told Nate why she was really there. “She told you about Carter?” Brooke stated. “And don’t lie because you are terrible at it.”

Nate smiled at her insult. “We said in our vows that we wouldn’t keep things from each other.” He tried to justify. 

“Well, as I said,” Brooke walked away from him and back to the couch. “I’m  _ fine _ ,” She stressed the words, looking back at him before she took a seat on the couch and opened up her laptop again. “Now, if you insist on  _ eating lunch at home,  _ come sit with me and help me put an offer on this place.” She opened up the webpage again. 

Nate walked over to her, no food with him and Brooke had to smirk at that. He probably already ate – it was around 2pm. He took a seat on his couch and leaned forward to look at the laptop screen. “A penthouse?”   

“Yes,” Brooke smiled, scrolling through the pictures of the place. “It’s beautiful, isn’t it?” 

“Yes, but why are you looking to upgrade? You’ve only had your apartment for a year.” He reminded her, saying the same thing Haley said earlier. 

“I just want a new place!” Brooke huffed out and out of the corner of her eye she could see Nate holding up his hands in mock defense. “Besides,” She changed her tone. “Look at this view. It’s even better than yours.” 

“So, you’re going to get a new place, the only reason being that you want a new place, nothing else?”

“Nothing else.” Brooke lied. 

Every time she thought about finally leaving Nate and Serena’s and going back home, all she could think of was Carter. The feeling of waking up in his arms or her feet resting on his lap as they argued over who was the better actor to play Seth Gecko. She could see the nice plates she used when Carter had made her breakfast the morning after news came out that Blair signed over her company to Chuck. He had only been staying the night for five weeks in an apartment she’d lived in for a year – but everything about the place reminded her of him now. 

Brooke had only cried once. 

It was in the elevator of Carters apartment building. Brooke had let the tears fall with no shame, crying hard at the realization that she had just lost something she never even had in the first place. It had wrecked her and Brooke didn’t think it was possible to cry that hard. But she quickly sobered up as the numbers on the elevator got lower and closer to the floor level. Brooke had wiped away her tears and messed up eye makeup, pulling out her compact and quickly wiping away the smudges of mascara and eyeliner. She had wiped her nose, though there was no fixing the redness around the edges of her nose or the trembling of her lip. Brooke was glad she had brought a pair of sunglasses with her hidden away in her purse. The young brunette quickly put them on as the elevator door opened and she walked out of the elevator as if she hadn’t just been sobbing. 

Brooke knew that some paparazzi had followed her and would be waiting for her to come back outside – so she was glad that she could hide her eyes from revealing just how broken she truly felt.  

“Okay,” Nate said, grabbing the laptop from her and placed it on his lap. “I’ll help you.” 

Brooke looked over at him with a soft smile. She felt a wave of affection and appreciation for Nate and couldn’t help herself when she moved closer to him, letting her head fall on his shoulder as he scrolled through the pictures as well. Nate moved his arm to wrap around her, pulling her closer to him. 

“Thank you, Nate.” Brooke said after a moment. “For coming home for lunch.” 

He understood what she was thanking him for and nodded, moving a bit to kiss the top of her head and then his focus went back to the laptop screen. “Always.” He said. 

 

* * *

  
  


Nate was actually very skilled when it came to getting her the best deal for the penthouse, though, Brooke had been willing to pay full price. He talked the real-estate guy down. And in just one week since she showed Nate the listing, the place was now hers. It was all so surreal. 

Her apartment hadn’t felt like home.  _ Well,  _ it had for a few weeks. But she wasn’t going to think about that. 

Brooke swore to herself that she would make this place feel like home. Victoria had tried to put her two-cents in about how to decorate the large penthouse, but Brooke sure as hell wasn’t going to take her home decor-advice. Blair on the other hand, refused to let Brooke shut her out when it came to picking furniture for the place. 

Surprisingly, she didn’t hate all the thing Blair had picked out and showed her. Brooke actually really liked them. But Brooke put her foot down when Blair tried to pick out all the bedding for each room – no, that was something Brooke would do on her own. And not to pat herself on the shoulder, but each room was beautifully unique and its own. 

The penthouse had been sold to her within three days, and as soon as she signed the papers and the penthouse was in her name, she had hired painters to start their work. Her room was her favorite; her own little oasis. The walls were painted a light purple, the large windows looking out onto the city had long white curtains to give her privacy (though with how beautiful the view was, Brooke wondered if she’d ever close the curtains. Brooke wanted to fall asleep watching the city lights twinkle in the night.)

There was still a lot that Brooke needed to buy for her new home, but it already looked beautiful. She always had a flare for decorating. Brooke smiled while remembering staying up all night decorating hers and Haley’s apartment while Haley slept like she was dead. 

Work had been hectic, which made getting all her things from her apartment moved to the penthouse difficult. So, Brooke had decided to only have the essentials packed for her. ( _ Yes,  _ she still hadn’t gone back to her apartment.) Brooke had actually made Blair go to her apartment to pack up her things with Nate. 

Blair had called Brooke while they were there saying that Carter had been sitting on the ground in the hallway when they got there, right outside her door. It had been two weeks since she last saw him. And she hated that when Blair told her that he was waiting outside her apartment, it made her heart race – and not in the ‘oh my god, I am so pissed off my heart rate is on the verge of being dangerously high’ more along the lines of,  _ I miss him.  _

And she hated herself for that. 

Nate had told Carter to leave, but he hadn’t. And when Blair and Nate left carrying some boxes full of Brookes most personal belongings and of course, her clothes; Carter had followed them asking why they were taking Brookes things. Blair had been harsh with him, telling Carter that Brooke was leaving. And that he would have all the time in the world for whatever skank he was sleeping with these days. 

Nate had told Brooke that Carter had looked crushed the moment Blair said that Brooke was leaving.  _ Good, he should.  _

The day she had gone to Carters apartment and had her heart crushed, smashed, and stomped into tiny little pieces, she had wanted to throw out her phone. But too many important people had her number. So, she simply blocked his cellphone. And when an unrecognized number called her she didn’t answer. If they left a voicemail she would call them back – if not, she knew it was Carter. When he did leave a message, the second she heard her name uttered in his voice, she quickly deleted it. 

It was her last night at Nate and Serena’s, and though she loved the married couple with all her heart – seeing them all happy and in love kinda just made Brooke feel worse. She tried so hard not to think of Carter or even shed a tear over him. But with each passing day her heart hurt more. 

Her phone rang, Serena’s face appearing on the screen as soon as it started ringing. Brooke picked up her phone and put it to her ear. “Hey, I’m just about to leave. We’re still meeting up at the restaurant, right?” 

_ “Don’t hate me but we’re running late!”  _ Serena said quickly.  _ “Blair is waiting for Chuck to pick up Henry and Nate is stuck at the office.”  _

“-Where are you?” Brooke asked. 

_ “With Nate at his office, glaring at him from across the room and complaining that I’m hungry.”  _

Brooke had to laugh at that. “You’re always hungry these days.” 

_ “Yes, that may be true. But I’m still going to complain about it and guilt him into trying to leave soon.”  _ Serena chuckled.  _ “I just wanted to catch you before you leave and show up and no one is there.”  _

“When should I start heading out?” Brooke asked Serena. 

Serena groaned.  _ “Nate said he’ll be done in less than an hour. So…forty minutes or so? Forty-five? I’m sorry, Brooke. I really wanted to give you a big send off.”  _

“Serena, I’m not moving out of state – I’m not even moving out of the City! In fact, I’m closer to you than I was before.” Brooke added. “Don’t worry about it.”

_ “You’re not mad?”  _

“I’m not mad. But please continue glaring at Nate from across the room.” Brooke said as she set her purse down on the dining room table. “I’ll see you later.” 

She and Serena had said goodbye and then Brooke listened as the line went dead. She thought about calling Blair, but a knocking on the door stopped her from doing that. Brooke sighed, setting her phone down on the table as well and walked through the apartment to the front door. 

Brooke froze once the door was open and she saw who was on the other side. 

“You’re moving?” Carter said from the hallway. 

“Yes.” She said, still frozen in the apartment. Brooke couldn’t believe that he was here. It had been two weeks and he hadn’t shown up to Nate and Serena’s yet. But on her last night he shows up? “Why are you here, Carter?” She asked him.

“You’re moving.” He stated. 

“-Does it matter?” Brooke said in a defensive tone. 

“It matters.” He argued. 

“Why?” She challenged him. “Why does it matter if I move, Carter? You can go back to having a different skank in your bed each night – you should be happy about that.”

“I’m not happy!” Carter shouted at her. “Why would I be happy about this?” He questioned her. “-I know I fucked up, okay! I fuck up a lot! I know we aren’t together but when I saw you in the hall with Nathan and I didn’t know who he was – I freaked out. I couldn’t stop picturing you with him and I lost my mind.” 

“So you decided to pick up the first slut you could find?!” Brooke shouted at him.  She shook her head, trying to shut down her emotions. “Whatever, it doesn’t matter. Because like you said – we weren’t together. Go home, Carter. Fuck every woman in New York for all I care. Just leave me the hell alone.”

“142.” Carter blurted out. 

Brooke didn’t understand. “Is that supposed to mean something to me? Or is that just the number of women you have slept with in the last two weeks?” 

“I first met you 142 days ago. I have not been able to stop thinking about you for 142 days. 20 weeks and one day. Every single morning I’d wake up and think of you, each night I’d go to bed and think of you. I woke up to you for five weeks and went to sleep holding you in my arms. And for the last two weeks I’ve felt like a part of me was missing. Like one of my limbs had been amputated. I barely sleep, I can hardly eat – all I think about is what an idiot I am and how I fuck up every good thing I touch.” He shook his head, stepping closer to Brooke. She took a step back from him, wanting to put some distance between them, but he followed each step she took backwards with a step forward. “I don’t want to fuck every woman in New York. I want to fuck you. I only want you.” He surged forward and captured her lips in a kiss. 

Brooke knew she should push him away and kick his ass out of Nate and Serena’s place, but his lips were so perfect and he tasted intoxicating and her heart was pounding in her chest as his hand moved to the back of her head and deepen the kiss as he tugged at her hair.

And when she finally did push him away, she had no intention in stopping what was happening. Instead, she walked past him in a quick move to shut the door and lock it before she found her way back to him. He went for her again, his mouth finding hers in a quick move, teeth knocking against each other sloppily as they greedily kissed one another. Brooke tugged at the bottom of his shirt, lifting it up, breaking their kiss as he pulled it over his head in a fast motion. She could feel Carter smirk against her lips, and though she was still pissed at him, her lips mirrored his. 

Carter grabbed at her hips, breaking their kiss again as he turned her around, mouth latching onto her neck as his hand fiddled with the zipper on the back of her dress. Brooke gasped at the sensation of cold air hitting her skin was he unzipped the dress, leaving her back bare, his mouth then moved down her back, teeth dragging along her skin. Brooke moaned, rubbing her thighs together to try and ease the throbbing sensation that was quickly becoming almost too much for her to handle on her own. Her dress fell to the floor and Carter spun her back to face him. 

Brooke stood in front of him, only wearing a matching bra and underwear set. It wasn’t a set she would have preferred to be wearing for when she had sex with Carter for the first time; but the look of his lust blown pupils and the way he licked at his lower lip as he looked her up and down was a confidence boost to Brooke. 

She stepped forward, moving into his space and moved her hand to his jeans, tugging at them to pull him closer as she unbuttoned them, pulling down the zipper. Brooke looked up through her lashes at him with a devilish smirk when she felt him twitch as she unzipped him, her finger brushing along his already hard length in the process. His eyes closed, lower lip trapped between his teeth as she let the jeans fall and her hand went to the waist of his boxer briefs. Brooke watched as his mouth fell open the second her hand went into his briefs, slowly until she was able to stroke him.  

His eyes opened when she began to pump him, liking the way he felt in her hand. He moved his hand to her neck and pulled her to him in a kiss, gasping when her thumb grazed his tip. Carter gripped her wrist, pulling it out of his briefs and let her hand fall as he grabbed at her hips, picking her up so she could wrap her legs around his waist, feeling him hard rubbing against her already wet center. It was torture, the feeling of having him rubbing against her – when all she wanted was for him to be inside her.

He started moving forward, stepping out of his jeans that were pooled around his ankles and walked through the apartment. 

“-Down the hall, second door on the left.” Brooke managed to say through rough kisses. He shook his head, stopping in the living room and moved to the couch, laying her down on the cushions before moving on top of her. 

She was an adult, and she probably shouldn’t be having sex on her friend’s couch – but Brooke wanted him desperately and didn’t care in the moment while his mouth moved to her neck, sucking on the pulse point making her toes curl. Carters mouth moved down to her covered breasts, pressing soft kisses to the exposed skin. Brooke sat up a bit, unhooking the bra from the back and letting him take it off her, watching as he threw it across the room while he gazed down at her. 

Brookes skin flushed as his eyes studied the new exposed skin, his hand moved to one breast, cupping it as his thumb worked her nipple while his mouth latched onto her other breast. Brooke gasped, back arching as he took his time lapping his tongue over her hardened nipple, letting the very tip of his tongue tease it. Brooke made a whining noise when his mouth moved off her breast, her own hand moving to where his mouth had just been to cover her breast in a harsh squeeze as he peppered kisses down her body until he was tugging at her underwear, pushing them down as he sat up a bit, watching as she played with her own breast as he pulled the underwear down her legs and helped her take them off. 

Brookes free hand gripped at her own hair, fingers running through it in harsh yanks when she felt his mouth move over her center, tongue licking down her slit making her let out a cry. 

“ _ Carter,”  _ She breathed out as his nose rubbed against her clit. 

“You’re so fucking beautiful,” He moaned while he continued to tease her clit, moving his mouth over the mound and sucking at it hard. Brooke arched her back again, trying to give him better access. He chuckled, the vibration causing her entire flesh to be covered in goosebumps. He moved his fingers to her slit, teasing it before testing out one finger, pushing through as he continued to flick at her clit with his tongue. She was already close, just from his mouth alone. But as his fingers rubbed along her walls she knew she’d be done for soon, when he added a second finger and began pumping, it only took a few thrusts of his hands until she was coming undone, walls clenching around his index and middle finger that were in a curling motion. 

Brooke breathed hard, chest moving up and down as he moved back on top of her, pressing a lazy kiss to her mouth. 

“I need to be inside you, beautiful.” Carter said, “Or I’ll have to buy Serena and Nate a new couch.” 

Brooke sat up, grabbing at him by the back of his neck and kissed him before she pushed him down a bit, changing their position so she was on top. He looked up as her as she tugged his boxer briefs down, not even bothering to push them all the way down before she climbed on top of him, moving his hands to rest on her waist. 

“You’re clean?” She asked him. He nodded, eyes closed as his hands gripped at her waist. “If you’re lying and I catch something, I will fucking kill you.” She threatened. He simply chuckled, and that wasn’t what Brooke wanted from him. So instead of lowering herself down on him, she moved her hands between her legs and gripped him hard. His eyes flew open and mouth hung as she kept a tight grip on him.

“Fuck, I’m clean!” He swore. “Jesus!” He groaned. 

Brooke smirked down at him, loosening her grip and began to stroke him. “Good. Because I didn’t bring any condoms with me.” Brooke positioned herself over him, still holding his length in her hand to help her as she finally lowered herself down on him slowly, gasping as her hands moved to his chest, getting used to the feeling of him full inside her. Brooke locked her eyes with his, watching his usual grey-blue eyes, dark and looking back up at her. She took in a breath as she began to move against him, his hands gripping her harder each time she rocked her hips. Both of their breathing quickened as her movements became faster, she bent over to kiss him, his hand on the crook of her neck as she moved, he’d thrust up with each movement and Brooke had to move her hand to his shoulder to help her stay up right. 

Carter moved them, sitting up so he could change their position, sliding out of her for a moment causing her to let out a cry only to have him push hard back inside her once she was on her back laying on the couch. His thumb moved between their bodies, down until he was rubbing fast circles against her clit. Brooke gripped onto him, mouth covering his in bruising kisses as he thrust into her, the circle motions against her clit causing her toes to curl. Carters hand went under her leg, pulling it up higher against his hip as he continued to thrust, hitting a spot that had her seeing stars and crying out his name as she came for the second time. 

He came a moment later, thrusts grew rigid until he came inside her. Brooke continued to breathe hard, hands running up and down his back as he stayed inside her, face now pressed against the crook of her neck. 

“IUD.” Brooke mumbled once she was finally able to catch her breath, nails scraping along Carters back. 

“Hmm?” He replied against her neck before moving his face over hers. 

“I asked you if you were clean. I just wanted to let you know that I have an IUD. So there’s no chance of you knocking me up if you were worried. Also, I’m clean too, for the record.” Brooke smirked.

Carter laughed as he looked down at her. He shook his head. “Honestly, I didn’t even think to ask you if you were clean. I just wanted to be inside you.” 

Brooke shook her head as she chuckled. “Which is how most people end up getting an STD.” 

Carter smiled down at her, moving a bit to nuzzle his nose against hers. Brooke smiled at the act of affection. “I missed you so much.” He whispered as he looked down at her. 

Brooke closed her eyes, no longer in a lust driven state and remembering why she had not been talking or seeing him for the last two weeks. She turned her head a bit so she wasn’t facing him. 

“I’m sorry.” He said next, his voice sincere. Carter moved his hand to her face, rubbing his thumb along her cheek as he moved her to look in her now opened eyes. They were filled with tears. “I hadn’t been with anyone since that night in the club. Even while I was in Europe with my sister. I could only think about you, want you, need you.” He swore to her. “And when I thought you were with someone else…I fucked up.” 

Brooke felt a tear fall, her lower lip trembling. 

“Brooke,” He said her name softly, wiping away her tears. 

“I know we weren’t together,” Brooke finally managed to say. “But you really hurt me, Carter. Why couldn’t you have just talked to me?” 

“Because I’m a fucking idiot. I don’t think I deserve someone like you and when I saw you with Nathan my brain was screaming at me that I had been right – that you’d never want anything from me other than a backroom hookup. I know I shouldn’t have left and I should have talked to you but…I was hurt.” 

Brooke closed her eyes, Blairs words now echoing in her head. “Your pride was wounded.” She shook her head, hating her own tone. Was it about his pride the whole time? 

“Not my pride.” He said causing her to open her eyes to look up at him. “You didn’t wound my pride, Brooke.” Carter looked down at her. “Do you understand?” He asked, sounding like he was almost afraid to say what she had hurt out loud. But she knew.

_ His heart.  _

Brooke nodded, moving up a bit to kiss him softly, her hand resting on his face. When she pulled away from him slowly, her eyes locked with his again. 

“Please don’t leave, Brooke.” He begged her. “Don’t leave me.”

She didn’t understand what he meant. “Carter,” 

“I know I fucked up. And I know I don’t deserve any more chances. But please don’t move back to LA.” 

Brooke kinked her brow up at him. “Who said I was moving to LA?” She asked him. 

“Blair.” 

She had to bite down on her lower lip hard to keep the scoff of a laugh from leaving her mouth. Of course Blair would say that to make him feel worse. It actually made her heart swell with affection for Blair that she would do that just to make him feel bad. It was wrong, but it was such a Blair thing to do. “I’m not moving to LA, Carter.” Brooke said, not being able to hold back the small chuckle. “I’m just moving out of my apartment.”

He shook his head and closed his eyes. “-Blair said,”

“Blair knew that you upset me and that you screwed that little skank. She was being a good friend in her own weird way.” Brooke said with a little laugh.

Carter pressed his forehead against hers and smiled. “What a bitch.” He said with a laugh. 

“You deserved it.” Brooke said before giving him a quick peck on the lips. “Now get off me, I need to get re-ready to go out for dinner.” Brooke said as she placed her hands on his chest to move him off her. “Because you messed up my hair and my lipstick is now smudged not to mention my underwear is,”

“Soaked?” He smirked as she tried to wiggle out from under him. 

Brooke rolled her eyes. “Don’t flatter yourself.” She said, able to sit up a bit.

He pushed her back down, pinning her hands above her head. 

She smirked up at him. “You really think you can go again?” She taunted him.

“With you?” He pressed his mouth to hers, slipping his tongue inside when she finally opened her mouth for him. Brooke moaned as he deepened the kiss and gasped when he pulled away. “I can go on all night, beautiful.” Carter smirked, grey-blue eyes shining at her. 

Brooke laughed, eyes crinkling at the sides as she scrunched her nose in amusement. “Normally I’d tell you to prove it.” Brooke said, her hands going to his chest again and giving him a hard shove. “But I do have to get ready for dinner. I’m meeting Blair, Serena, and Nate for dinner. A ‘goodbye/thanks for letting me crash here’ dinner.” She moved out from under him and got off the couch, looking around for her bra. Brooke then turned back to look at him. He was on his back now on the couch. “Oh my god.” Brooke closed her eyes. “I can’t believe I just had sex with you on your ex-girlfriend’s couch.”

Carter laughed, moving his hands behind his head as a pillow.  

Brooke found her bra, quickly putting it back on before grabbing her underwear off the couch. She wanted to put them back on, just to spite Carter and show him that she could still use them – but he was right. They were pretty wet from her arousal. So, she simply threw them at him before hurrying out of the living room and down the hall into her bedroom. “-Get dressed! I don’t want anyone showing up here and seeing you naked on the couch!” 

By the time Brooke had cleaned herself up to look decent enough and changed into a new outfit, Carter had gotten dressed and picked up her discarded dress and brought it into her room. He stood behind her as she looked at herself in the mirror, pushing her hair behind her neck and pressing his lips to her skin. 

Brooke smiled, closing her eyes. “I would invite you to come,” 

“-I already came.” He teased, mouth still pressed to her neck. “And so did you.” He mumbled. “Twice.” 

Brooke bit down on her lower lip, eyes still closed as she fought a moan. “-You need to stop, or I’m going to have to change again.” Brooke told him as he sucked at her skin. He chuckled and turned her so she was facing him. He placed his hands on her hips, Brookes hands resting on his shoulders. “I would invite you, Carter.” She said honestly. “But I think maybe I should ease them out of hating you again.”  

“I know,” He said in a whisper. “But you have to promise me that you’re not going to shut me out again.”

“Are you going to sleep with any random skanks in the next twenty-four hours?” Brooke said with a raise of her brows. Carter grinned and shook his head. “Well, then I won’t shut you out. But you need to tell me when you’re upset or something is bothering you. Okay? Because I’m not going to do this if you’re just going to hurt me again.”

“I won’t.” He pressed a kiss to her lips. “I’m sorry.” He whispered against her lips. Brooke nodded, her hand going to his face. “Do I at least get to know where you are moving?” He asked after pulling away from her a bit. 

Brooke smirked. “Maybe.” 

  
  


* * *

  
  
  


“-Where the hell have you been?” Blair said once Brooke walked over to the table where they were all sitting waiting for her. “-I called you like twenty minutes ago and you said you were on your way.” 

“I know, I’m sorry!” Brooke said as she pulled out her chair to take a seat. “-I got held up.” 

She got held up because Carter somehow managed to get her into bed again. But in her actual bed. Which was a lot more comfortable than her couch. And there was a lot more room for them to roll around.

“I kinda already ordered.” Serena admitted, breaking her away from her thoughts. 

“It’s fine, Serena. Don’t worry!” Brooke picked up the menu and scanned through it. “I think I’m going to get the Chicken Risotto,” Brooke placed the menu down on the table. When she looked up, Blair, Serena, and Nate were all giving her a funny look. “What?” 

Nate looked away, fighting a smile. As did Serena, but Blair. Oh, Blair Waldorf, she did not look away. Instead, she narrowed her eyes at Brooke from across the table. 

“You have a hickey!” 

“What?” Brookes hand flew to her neck where Carter had been sucking earlier. “No, I don’t! I burnt my neck when I was curling my hair!” Brooke lied. 

“Really? The curling iron burn go-to excuse? Seriously? Your hair is straight, Brooke! And the hickey isn’t on your neck.” Blair said, eyes lowering to Brookes cleavage. 

Brooke used both hands to cover her chest. Dammit, she hadn’t even noticed the mark above her breast. 

“You were having sex!” Blair said next. 

“No!” Brooke lied horribly. 

Nate couldn’t hold back his laughter at the sound of Brookes high pitched voice. 

“I cannot believe you made us wait here while you were having sex.” Blair said in annoyance, shaking her head. 

“Uh, hello – Serena said you guys were running late! I didn’t expect you to call and say you were all there!” Brooke argued with Blair. 

“It was  _ my  _ night with Henry tonight, Brooke!” Blair said in anger. “-I should be at home with him right now! But instead, I asked Chuck to take him so I could go to this stupid dinner that you showed up late to!” 

“Blair,” Serena said in a soft tone, trying to calm down her friend. 

“This  _ stupid dinner,  _ is my way of thanking Serena and Nate for letting me stay with them! So you didn’t even have to come!” Brooke couldn’t keep in her anger. 

“Good!” Blair shouted as she stood up from her seat, throwing her cloth napkin on the table. “Then there’s no reason for me to stay!” 

“-Blair, come on,” Nate sighed. 

“Good!” Brooke said back to Blair. “Go!” 

Blair glared before she stomped her way away from the table and out of the restaurant. Brooke closed her eyes once she was gone, and shook her head. She really shouldn’t have gotten so upset with Blair. 

She opened her eyes and looked up at Serena and Nate. “I’m sorry, you guys.”

“It’s okay, Brooke.” Serena smiled at her softly. “Blair was in a bad mood since she first got here.” 

“I shouldn’t have been a bitch, though.” 

“Hey, sometimes Blair needs someone to knock her down.” Nate said as he grabbed his glass of scotch. “-She’ll get over it.”

But they didn’t know how far Blair went for Brooke to protect her. Blair had signed over her company to a man she loathed just to keep him from posting a video of Brooke and Carter’s little backroom hookup on the internet. There was no reason for Brooke to act like a brat to Blair. It was wrong, not after everything she had done for her. A part of her wanted to excuse herself and leave to go after Blair. But she couldn’t do that to Nate and Serena. Especially since she would be paying for the check tonight. 

“So,” Serena said, breaking the silence. “Who’d you have sex with?” She smirked.

Brooke blushed, looking down at the menu before picking it up to cover her face. She wasn’t ready to tell them it was Carter. So, she’d stay mute about it.

But Serena was very smart, and Brooke was sure she knew who Brooke had just slept with.

Twice.  

 


End file.
